Insiders, analysts and fans alike were forecasting the worst for Jeff Fowler’s Sonic the Hedgehog when the terrifying original design for the character was first unleashed upon an unsuspecting world. Nobody had any interest in handing over their hard-earned cash to sit in a theater and watch a family film where the title hero was the stuff of nightmares, and there was a sigh of relief when the backlash became so overwhelming that Paramount delayed the movie by three months and funnelled millions of dollars into a complete redesign.
It worked out pretty well for all parties in the end, too, with Sonic the Hedgehog becoming just the second video game adaptation in history to secure a Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes after Detective Pikachu, while it also wound up as the genre’s highest-grossing effort at the domestic box office after hauling in over $146 million, and it still ranks as the fourth biggest hit of the year thanks to earning $310 million globally.
Inevitably, a sequel was announced shortly after and based on Sonic‘s post-credits scenes, it would be safe to assume that Tails is going to factor heavily into the story, while Jim Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik will be back with a much more video game-accurate appearance, too. However, the latest addition to the rumor mill claims that Knuckles is also set to turn up, and he’ll have a substantial role to play when the second installment arrives in April 2022.
Of course, the character has already been heavily linked with at least a cameo, and while further details about his involvement weren’t made available, it makes total sense for the Sonic the Hedgehog universe to expand by bringing more and more familiar faces from the console back catalogue into the feature-length franchise.
