Sonic The Hedgehog: Knuckles TV Spinoff - What We Know So Far
Everyone's favorite edgy echidna is back! News dropped back in February 2022 that a new spin-off TV series is in the works which will be centered around Knuckles — Sonic's rival-turned-ally who made his film debut in the 2022 motion picture "Sonic the Hedgehog 2." The show is being produced by Paramount + in conjunction with Sega, and it will feature a wide cast of actors including some who will be reprising their roles from the films and others who will be playing new characters.
This is exciting news for any "Sonic" lovers out there since Knuckles is widely regarded as one of the best characters in the franchise. In fact, this bare-knuckle brawler has been a fan favorite ever since he was first introduced in the 1994 Sega Genesis classic, "Sonic the Hedgehog 3." Even so, he's always been a little bit overshadowed by his speedy blue friend. Now it looks like this new show will finally give the Guardian of the Master Emerald some long overdue time in the limelight, but fans are full of questions about exactly what kind of show this is going to be. Here's everything we know about it so far.
Is there a release date?
The "Knuckles" TV series will be available to stream on Paramount + when it becomes available, but fans who are excited to see the Red Dude in action will probably want to know when exactly that's going to be. Unfortunately, there isn't a clear-cut answer to that just yet, but it isn't exactly open-ended either. See, while Paramount hasn't announced an official release date for the series as of yet, it has noted that "Knuckles" is set to take place somewhere between the events of "Sonic the Hedgehog 2" and the upcoming "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" — the latter of which is currently slated to hit theaters on December 20, 2024.
While nothing is certain, it's highly probable that the "Knuckles" TV show will more than likely be released before the next film. It only makes sense that the studio would want to release them in timeline order while simultaneously building hype for its upcoming movie.
Another report suggests that it might even come within the next few months. An exclusive from Deadline that was posted back when the show was first announced states that "Knuckles" was planned for release sometime in 2023 though no new information has come out about a more specific date since.
What will it be about?
There aren't a lot of details about the plot of "Knuckles," but we do have a loose understanding of the premise. According to another report by Deadline, the series will focus on Knuckles the Echidna as he struggles to teach Wade Whipple "the ways of the Echidna Warrior." Fans of the "Sonic" films will remember Whipple as the foolish, but generally good natured, police officer played by Adam Pally who worked alongside Sonic's friend, Tom Wachowski, and got mixed up in several of Dr. Robotnik's schemes. Wade often serves as comic relief, getting into trouble and causing more problems than he typically solves, so learning a little discipline might do him some good.
Little is known about exactly what this training will entail, but Knuckles spent his entire life training to recover and safeguard the Master Emerald. In fact, the Echidna Tribe was considered a heroic order of warriors who valued strength above all else and was dedicated to protecting the greater good, so it seems unlikely that Knuckles will go easy on his protégé. His regime will likely involve copious amounts of strength training and more than a few one-sided boxing matches.
Who will be making it?
One thing we do know for sure is that the cast and production crew set to make "Knuckles" is already full of big names. Deadline has reported that the director of the "Sonic the Hedgehog" films, Jeff Fowler, is attached. He will be serving as the director for the pilot while Ged Wright, Brandon Trost, Jorma Taccone, and Carol Banker will be directing other episodes.
#knuckles pic.twitter.com/Hr4zNjuLuj
— Jeff Fowler (@fowltown) April 17, 2023
Then there's Neal H. Moritz, Toby Ascher, and Toru Nakahara who are listed as executive producers. The script writer for "Sonic the Hedgehog 2," John Whittington, is also on board. He was responsible for writing the series' pilot and will be assuming the role of the lead writer.
As for the cast, it was reported that the legendary Idris Elba is returning to his role as Knuckles alongside his live-action co-star Adam Pally as Wade. It's also stated that Elba will be an executive producer on the show. Tika Sumpter will be coming back as Maddie, and, finally, Rory McCann, Edi Patterson, Julian Barratt, Scott Mescudi, and Ellie Taylor can also be counted among the actors who will be making an appearance in the series though their roles are still unknown.
More information will likely come to light as the series release draws closer.