‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2’ character posters offer new look at Knuckles

Three new Sonic the Hedgehog 2 character posters have dropped to celebrate Chinese New Year. Releasing just before the pandemic begun, in The Before Times of February 2020, the first Sonic the Hedgehog proved to be a huge hit for Paramount. While this is admittedly not saying a whole lot, the Sega adaptation stands as one of the most popular video game movies ever. So the hype is high for its incoming sequel, especially as it’ll introduce one of the franchise’s most beloved characters.

And you can get a new look at the character in question with these new posters, as shared by The Tails Channel on Twitter. The three one-sheets showcase Sonic himself (Ben Schwartz is returning as the spiky speedster), new best pal Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey is reprising her role from the games), and Knuckles the Echidna. Knuckles is being brought to life by none other than Idris Elba, who already impressed fans with his brief cameo at the end of the first trailer. Catch the posters via the gallery below:

Though this is only the second movie, Sonic 2 is drawing inspiration from 1994’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 by throwing Knuckles into the mix. After being stranded on the mushroom planet in the last one, Jim Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik returns to Earth with a new ally in tow, who he has cajoled into aiding in his search for the all-powerful Master Emerald. Going by the game, though, Knuckles may eventually realize who the real villain is and switch sides to Team Sonic.

Live-action players James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Adam Pally, Natasha Rothwell, and Lee Majdoub are all back for the sequel, with Shemar Moore joining in an undisclosed role. Watch out for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 when it races into theaters on April 8 in the U.S. Going by the date on these posters, it’ll open in China on April 28.