It’s one of our favorite video-game-to-movies adaptations and the Sonic 3 cast includes an actor we weren’t expecting, but we’re delighted he is. It’s (obviously) the third installment in the Sonic movie franchise, which features the character Sonic the Hedgehog—created by the Japanese video game developers Yuji Naka, Naoto Ohshima, and Hirokazu Yasuhara for SEGA.
The first movie was released in 2020 and was well-received by audiences, it also did pretty well at the box office earning $319.7 million worldwide. It featured a CGI version of Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, alongside live-action actors like James Marsden and Jim Carrey as Dr. Robotnik, regarded as his best performance in years.
There was initially some backlash against Sonic’s appearance. Many felt that the CGI rendition of Sonic looked too humanoid, with exaggerated teeth and eyes that appeared unsettling. Memes and jokes about Sonic’s design circulated widely, and the negative reception prompted the filmmakers to take action. Paramount Pictures delayed the movie’s release to allow time for the redesign, which ultimately paid off.
Anticipation for Sonic 2 was high, especially with the introduction of beloved characters from the Sonic video game series, such as Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey) and Knuckles (Idris Elba), which was critically well-received. Now, with the announcement of the Sonic 3 cast, anticipation is already building for the film which has a release date of December 20, 2024.
Sonic 3 cast
Here’s who’s been confirmed as part of the Sonic 3 cast.
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Keanu Reeves
Image Credit: Getty Images/Paramount Pictures Keanu Reeves was announced to join the Sonic 3 cast on April 15, 2024, to play the role of Shadow.
Shadow the Hedgehog is a character from the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series, introduced by Sega, debuting in the game Sonic Adventure 2 in 2001. Throughout the Sonic series, Shadow has appeared as both an antagonist and an ally to Sonic and his friends, depending on the storyline.
Shadow’s backstory varies across different media, but he is commonly depicted as an artificially created hedgehog made by the villainous scientist Dr. Gerald Robotnik (Dr. Eggman’s grandfather) as part of a government experiment called Project Shadow. Shadow possesses super speed like Sonic but also has unique abilities such as chaos control, which allows him to manipulate time and space using the power of the Chaos Emeralds.
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James Marsden
Image Credit: Images: Getty / Paramount Pictures James Marsden will reprise his role as Tom Wachowski in the Sonic 3 cast. Speaking to ScreenRant about Sonic 2, Marsden said: “I’m super proud of this movie, I’m super proud of what we did the first time around, and I hope we continue making these movies. Ben’s talked about and described it as [having] elements of Indiana Jones. There’s elements of Marvel movies, and I think that has the potential to just keep expanding this universe.”
He continued: “And obviously, the video games have been around since the early 90s, so there’s so many more characters we can introduce. I hope this is gonna be a fun ride for a long time for everyone.”
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Jim Carrey
Image Credit: Getty Images / Paramount Pictures Jim Carrey is reprising his role as Dr. Robotnik aka Dr. Eggman in the Sonic 3 cast; Sonic’s archnemisis. In some versions of Sonic lore, he is depicted as a brilliant scientist who turns to villainy out of a desire for revenge or power. In other iterations, he is portrayed as an eccentric inventor whose experiments go awry, leading him down a path of villainy.
Speaking to Screenrant about him taking on this character, he said: “Ultimately, it’s fun to play those kinds of characters. Because they’re off the hook, and there’s a license to kill and say outrageous stuff. And also, to bring the character into your whole body and be very flamboyant.”
He continued: “But also, the character is the contrast to the innocence that we all want to reconnect to. He accentuates how innocent and fun and accepting and loving Sonic is. Sonic represents that preteen discovery of the world and enjoyment before skepticism creeps in.”
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Ben Schwartz
Image Credit: Everett Collection / Paramount Pictures Parks & Rec star Ben Schwartz is also reprising his role as Sonic in the Sonic 3 cast. In 2023, he was rumored to voice Shadow as well, but that character as we now know has gone to Keanu Reeves.
Speaking with CinemaBlend, Schwartz said that getting the role of Shadow could have kicked off “the villainous stage of my career. Maybe it’s now that I just do this, because The After Party was kind of villainous, and then this. I think maybe pushing into all that stuff would be incredible.”
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Idris Elba
Image Credit: Everett Collection / Paramount Pictures Idris Elba is reprising his role as Knuckles in the Sonic 3 cast. For the uninitiated, Knuckles is an anthropomorphic echidna with red fur, white fur on his chest, and distinctive spiked knuckles. He’s known for his super strength and ability to glide through the air using his dreadlock-like spines. He is also adept at climbing walls and can dig into the ground to unearth hidden items or pathways.
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Krysten Ritter
Image Credit: Photo by Unique Nicole/WireImage Jessica Jones star Krysten Ritter has been confirmed as part of the Sonic 3 cast, but details on her character Captain Rockwell are scant because it’s a character that doesn’t exist in the video game universe.