Sonic the Hedgehog frenemy Knuckles is about to launch his own spin-off series on Paramount+. Following the success of the blue haze’s two films and the upcoming third entry, audiences can now expect more content. This heralds a new era for the Sonic franchise, with its latest video game, Sonic Limitsreap rave reviews, and sonic primea Netflix series, returns with more episodes after a well-received first season.
This time it’s Knuckles’ turn to shine. The red echidna will expand Sonic’s universe with a streaming show in an era where secondary characters get their own features and series to squeeze out every aspect of a franchise. Here are some insights into what has been confirmed so far Knuckles and what audiences can expect in terms of story.
Knuckles: what to expect from the plot, cast and crew
The Knuckles spin-off series is expected to take place in the recent Sonic movie universe. The story takes place after the events of Sonic The Hedgehog2 in the rural town of Green Hills, Montana, the main setting for the first two films.
Idris Elba will reprise his role of Knuckles, the echidna. His main co-star will be Adam Pally, who also returns as Deputy Wade Whipple, Tom Wachowski’s wacky co-worker on the local police force. So far, the story is set to see the two working together as Knuckles teaches Wade how to become an echidna warrior.
Logically, the show will take a comedic twist just like the movies, and it’s supposed to be a miniseries, so it can speak for itself. But as usually happens with popular franchises, good performances can always lead to a second batch of episodes.
Another confirmed role for the series is rapper/singer-songwriter and actor Tyler Antonius, who will voice Shadow, the Hedgehog, Sonic’s doppelgänger-like foe. Shadow had already been teased as a post-credits scene at the end of the second movie, so chances are that Knuckles will serve as a tie-in for the third installment of the film series to be released in 2024.
The latest confirmed returning character is Maddie, Tom Wachowski’s wife and friend of Sonic, who helps him defeat Jim Carrey’s brilliant Dr. Robotnik in the first two films, played by Tika Sumpter.
Other actors and actresses have been confirmed in the series with undisclosed roles. Edith Paterson (The righteous gems, Knives out) is set to have a main role in the story, but no information about her character’s name is available.
Other actors and actresses in the cast include Julian Barratt (The mighty bad, kill Eve), Kid Cudi (Don’t look up, X), Rory McCann (Game of Thrones, Jumanji: The Next Level), and Ellie Taylor (Ted Lasso, Brotherhood). They will all return in the series.
It has yet to be determined whether James Marsden, Ben Schwartz and Colleen O’Shaughnessey will reprise their respective roles of Tom Wachkowski, Sonic and Tails. Nevertheless, a Sonic cameo is very likely to say the least. In addition, Jeff Fowler, the director of the films, could direct some or all of the episodes in the miniseries.
Knuckles: what we expect to see
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The red echidna has been an essential character in the Sonic universe ever since Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the Sega Genesis video game. Originally an antagonist created by Dr. Robotnik was tricked into going after Sonic, the second movie already dealt with this storyline. This means that the premise for the series is Knuckles and Sonic as allies.
Nevertheless, it would be a good opportunity to explore Knuckles’ past. In the first movie, one of the first scenes, Sonic and his parent figure Longclaw, the owl, were being chased by the echidna tribe. There are clarifications to Knuckles’ origins, and part of the plot should definitely revolve around his old life, how his society worked, and why they went after Sonic in the first place (probably a chaos emerald-related issue). The premise of the “echidna warrior” clearly hints at a possible connection to the echidna tribe.
Featuring a silly sidekick like Wade Whipple, another storyline the series will likely pick up on is Knuckles’ adaptation to planet Earth. Again, the comedic potential is high as Wade shares some of his nerdy or ridiculous hobbies or preferences with Knuckles and he tries to explain to the echidna how people work, something that already worked well in the second film.
Finally, Shadow’s role in the series may not necessarily be that of the antagonist. It’s possible that a subplot of the show tells the story of how he could become the villain in the third film. Still, Shadow’s development based on the video games is long and nuanced, so the miniseries can help tell the story well without overloading the third movie with its backstory.
Knuckles is expected to land on Paramount+ in the second half of 2023. Production began on April 17, as teased by Sonic The Hedgehog’s official Twitter account. As new details emerge, speculation will continue to grow until the series hits the streaming service. This could be the spark of the Sonic cinematic universe.