Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Everything We Know So Far

It wasn't so long ago that the first "Sonic the Hedgehog" movie was being clowned for a truly horrifying design for the Blue Blur. Fast-forward six years and a franchise-saving redesign, and Sonic is getting ready for his fourth film in less than a decade. The turnaround from one of the most heavily memed trailers ever to a film series grossing over $1 billion has been impressive, launching the Sega mascot back to the pinnacle of family media. And with "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" earning the best reception yet in both box office and critical reviews, anticipation is high for "Sonic the Hedgehog 4."

The fourquel is currently in production and slated for a release date on March 19, 2027 — less than a year to wait. And while story details have been kept somewhat close to the chest over at Paramount, there's a lot we do know. Ben Schwartz is back as Sonic, alongside Idris Elba as Knuckles and Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Tails. A teaser trailer confirmed Jim Carrey's return as Dr. Robotnik, despite the character's apparent death in the last film; and Keanu Reeves' Shadow the Hedgehog, introduced in "Sonic 3," is back as well, as teased in that entry's final credits scene. Other longstanding "Sonic" co-stars like James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, and Lee Majdoub will also be back.

Beyond that, the tag at the end of "Sonic 3" revealed that Amy Rose will be entering the story in "Sonic 4," along with classic villain Metal Sonic. Here's what else we know.

The mid-credits scene in "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" shows Sonic being ambushed in the woods by a squad of Metal Sonic robots — a design taken straight out of older games like 1993's "Sonic CD." A hooded, hammer-wielding figure then appears to help Sonic fight them off, who reveals herself to be his longtime video game love interest Amy Rose. Since then, it has been announced that Kristen Bell will be voicing the pink hedgehog in "Sonic 4."

Amy was first introduced in "Sonic CD" as a damsel in distress kidnapped by Metal Sonic. Her lore in the early games mostly involved her developing a crush on Sonic after he saves her life, with some games pushing her to relatively violent strategies to get Sonic to go out with her. It's the sort of characterization that's best left in the past, and Amy's active role in the "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" mid-credits scene already suggests she'll be a more balanced character this time around. Director Jeff Fowler also tweeted a picture of himself holding a prop version of her famous Piko Piko Hammer on March 2, 2026.

While Amy seems much more capable here than her incarnation in "Sonic CD," the introduction of her and Metal Sonic at the same time evokes that game specifically, as it was where both characters debuted. The teaser trailer also includes an orchestral rendition of the game's iconic theme song, "Sonic Boom."

All of the "Sonic Boom" references point to that being the main inspiration for "Sonic the Hedgehog 4," as "Sonic Adventure 2" was for the last movie. However, it might be more of a general influence this time around. In the game, Metal Sonic is a creation of Dr. Robotnik. The game also has a time-travel component, which could be a fun plot device to bring into the movie. Leaked concept art from "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" included what appeared to be a mock-up of an alternate "Sonic" movie timeline, where Metal Sonic can be seen standing alongside Eggman. Many fans have interpreted this to be a tease of what's to come, even though it didn't make it into the final film. An ominous line in the teaser trailer even says "your time is about to run out," which may well be an additional bit of foreshadowing.

All that said, "Sonic CD" isn't the only game where Metal Sonic is a primary antagonist. "Sonic Heroes," the game set directly after "Sonic Adventure 2" in the video game timeline, also has the metallic hedgehog as its main villain, and that game would make sense as another place from which to draw inspiration. Since Shadow is returning in "Sonic 4," and "Sonic 3" adapted much of "Sonic Adventure 2," it would be natural to embrace "Heroes" alongside "CD," continuing Shadow's arc (which, in the games, includes an amnesia arc and an army of clones) and potentially bringing in the more powerful version of Metal Sonic introduced at the end of the later game.

While the "Adventure" games are more well-remembered than "Sonic Heroes," "Sonic 3" already paid subtle homage to the latter, briefly putting Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails in the "fly formation" during an early action sequence. The creative team behind the films clearly has some reverence for that era of games as well.

It's no secret that Shadow the Hedgehog is something of a fan favorite, and the return of Keanu Reeves' version of the character in "Sonic 4" could mean a few things story-wise. As previously mentioned, Shadow has a pretty thorough arc in the games after "Sonic Adventure 2." He loses his memory, discovers that Dr. Eggman has been making clones of him, and later (in his own self-titled game), he discovers that he was created as a weapon by a race of alien conquerors called the Black Arms. This is part of where Shadow the Hedgehog gets his powers from in the games.

The "Shadow the Hedgehog" game is something of a meme due its hyper-edgy vibe, which didn't at all fit the franchise back in 2005. But "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" winks to the game more than once, with Shadow even picking up a gun and riding a motorcycle in a duel with Sonic, as he does in that game. The Black Arms storyline has also been brought back by Sega in the 2024 game "Sonic X Shadow Generations," so the company behind the franchise seems happy to revisit the events of "Shadow the Hedgehog," despite the game being panned in its day.

Nothing has been confirmed so far, but in "Sonic 3," Shadow's backstory is that he arrives on Earth in a black meteor — an origin that seems designed to lead to an eventual Black Arms storyline. With Amy and Metal Sonic taking the spotlight in "Sonic 4," that likely isn't coming soon (if we ever get there at all), but the pieces are in place to adapt Shadow's story from both "Heroes" and his own game.

In addition to Amy and Metal Sonic, there will be new human characters in "Sonic the Hedgehog 4," with several big stars joining the cast. Ben Kingsley, Nick Offerman, Matt Berry, and Richard Ayoade have all been confirmed, though we don't yet know what characters they will be playing.

Berry and Ayoade, both noted British comedians, have collaborated previously on shows like "The IT Crowd" and "Garth Marenghi's Darkplace," so it's possible that they have been cast as a duo — though that's purely speculation. It's also feasible that one of the new actors announced will be the voice of Metal Sonic. While director Jeff Fowler did tell Polygon in 2025 that "traditionally, in most of his incarnations, Metal Sonic doesn't speak," he seemed open to the idea of that changing for the film. Notably, Metal Sonic does speak in "Sonic Heroes," just not in the older games like "Sonic CD."

Director Jeff Fowler hasn't revealed much about "Sonic the Hedgehog 4," save for the inclusion of Amy Rose and Metal Sonic. But he has discussed the film on several occasions; and in the same interview with Polygon where he mentioned the possibility of casting a voice actor for Metal Sonic, he acknowledged "Sonic CD" as inspiration.

"We're all dying to get a female character in the mix with Amy, but at the same time, to honor how they were both introduced in 'Sonic CD,'" Fowler said. "It felt very cool to honor that chronology and have them simultaneously introduced." However, the director also said that the team won't be adhering too strictly to the 1993 game. "What we always try to do is honor the characters and stories that made them so iconic, but also give it a movie coat of paint," he said. "I think [based on] Amy's original introduction, we have some different story needs — [we can't just rely on] 'Sonic CD.'"

On the topic of Metal Sonic and the leaked "Sonic 3" concept art teasing a dark future of Eggman villainy, co-writer Josh Miller has admitted that the credits scene featuring Amy was changed from its original concept. "More was revealed, and some slightly different things [were] involved," Miller told Cinemablend in 2025. "It was always gonna be Amy Rose. [She] was always showing up to save Sonic from something, but the something evolved."

"Sonic the Hedgehog 4" releases in theaters on March 19, 2027.