Time to knuckle down as Sonic movie spin-off series ‘Knuckles’ finally enters production

Before we’ve even had the chance to process Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the most faithful sequel we could have asked for, Paramount Plus has teased that the upcoming spin-off series Knuckles has finally entered production. There was some understandable hesitation when Paramount announced the live-action Sonic the Hedgehog movie back in 2020, especially considering how the animators had completely ruined Sonic’s signature look initially. After fan outrage forced the creatives to alter Sonic’s appearance for the better, excitement for the adaptation skyrocketed. When Jim Carrey was cast as Doctor Robotnik, aka Doctor Eggman, that was the icing on the proverbial cake.

And then we had the absolute pleasure of welcoming Colleen O’Shaughnessey — the original voice of Tails — back into the fold. Furthermore, Idris Elba was cast as the voice of Knuckles, rounding out what promised to be a commercially and critically successful film. And to no one’s surprise… it was. Against a budget of roughly $90–110 million, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 managed to take home just over $400 million, which is merely a testament to the sheer capability of the Sonic fanbase. It didn’t take long for Paramount to announce a third Sonic film in the works, along with a solo venture for Knuckles, who gained immense popularity in the sequel and undoubtedly stole the show.

The official Sonic the Hedgehog movie Twitter account uploaded a teaser image of the clapperboard for the Knuckles set, including a replica of the Australian bush hat that Knuckles inherited from his grandfather, as seen in the Sonic OVA from 1996.

Reliable source DiscussingFilm confirmed that Jeff Fowler would be returning to direct the Knuckles pilot after working thus far on the other live-action Sonic projects. Fowler has also worked on Wreck-It Ralph, Detective Pikachu, and Deadpool, so there’s no denying that he’s made quite the name for himself and his career speaks for itself. If the Knuckles series is anything like the Sonic movies, we’ll be in for an Easter Egg-filled treat that pays homage to the video games of old.

In the same tweet, we discovered that Knuckles — for continuity purposes — would be set between Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 and focus on Knuckles training Wade (whom we’re assuming is Wade Whipple) as his protégé in the ways of the Echidna warrior.

That’s as much as we’ve got to go on right now, but there’s no denying we’ll all be glad to see Idris Elba’s sultry voice gracing our screens once more.