Here's What 'Sonic the Hedgehog 3' Will Likely Be About
Those two years before the premiere better go fast.
The week has surely begun with some good news for Sonic the Hedgehog fans, with Paramount finally announcing the release date for the long-anticipated third movie. With the film seemingly having a working title of 'Sonic Movie 3' (at least that's what its official hashtag reads), fans are now bracing for the December 20, 2024 premiere – and there are already plenty of suggestions as to where the story is going to take the beloved characters.
The second movie's post-credit scene has shown us what we all craved: Shadow the Hedgehog, "an ultimate life form" created by Professor Gerald Robotnik, is officially a part of the Sonic cinematic universe. One of the series' most iconic characters, Shadow boasts a mysterious and dark backstory that involves a human named Maria with whom he shared a deep bond – something that can potentially be explored in the upcoming movie.
Shadow and Sonic have never been particularly on good terms: over the course of the games and animated series, the two have been jumping from rivals to forced allies. One storyline that the third movie could possibly focus on is how Sonic and Shadow teamed up in order to save the planet from a space colony that is falling on it. That plotline, however, did not particularly end well for Shadow in the animated series; so if the creators want to keep Shadow around for the next Sonic movies, they might as well ditch it.
Initially, Shadow is an antihero, and it's likely he will be presented as such at the beginning of the third movie, given that he is originally created by Professor Robotnik. Eggman might want to weaponize Shadow against Sonic; however, given the tendencies already established in the two previous movies, it's unlikely that Shadow will go full evil mode. Still, the canon envisages that Shadow struggles with memory loss, and as he tries to regain his memories, both Sonic and Eggman might try to influence him so that he joined forces with one of the sides.
What fans are clearly craving to see, however, is a face-off between Sonic and Shadow, like the one the blue speedster had with Knuckles in the second movie. With Shadow essentially being an "evil version" of Sonic with similar abilities fueled by his Chaos Control skills, this battle might easily top the Sonic-Knuckles skirmish in the list of the most epic clashes in the Sonic cinematic universe.
Besides, the third movie might also introduce more new characters, as the original Sonic universe has plenty to offer. After the studio announced the release date, Rouge the Bat, one of Shadow's allies, quickly got trending on Twitter; additionally, many fans have been rallying for Amy, Sonic's love interest, to finally appear on the big screen.
Still, there are two more years to get to know more about 'Sonic the Hedgehog 3'. Until 2024 arrives, there is plenty of time to binge-watch that old-school animated series or maybe throw an all-Sonic games marathon… just saying.