Paramount Pictures is going full steam with its Sonic the Hedgehog film franchise by attaching some of Hollywood’s hottest stars to voice iconic characters from the expanding SEGA series. It broke the internet when Idris Elba said he was voicing Knuckles the Echidna for Sonic the Hedgehog 2. I could hear the rapturous screams from my office in Canada as fans of the Blue Blur rejoiced. Now, Paramount is rekindling the fire by bringing Keanu Reeves into the fold as Shadow the Hedgehog for Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Speaking about Reeves joining the cast, Idris Elba believes it was his destiny to work alongside the John Wick actor, and he couldn’t be happier about his good fortune.

“I’m a big fan of his,” Elba said about Keanu Reeves in an interview with IGN. “I’ve heard that he’s a fan of mine, and we are destined to make something together. So, here we go.”

It’s worth noting this isn’t the first time Elba and Reeves have collaborated on a shared project. They voice characters in Cyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt RED’s action role-playing game, with Reeves voicing Johnny Silverhand and Elba as Solomon Reed from the Phantom Liberty expansion.

James Marsden reprises his role as Tom Wachowski in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the sheriff of Green Hills. Other returning cast members include Ben Schwartz as Sonic the Hedgehog, Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Miles “Tails” Prower, Idris Elba as Knuckles the Echidna, Tika Sumpter as Maddie Wachowski, Tom Butler as Commander Walters, Lee Majdoub as Agent Stone, and, of course, Jim Carrey as Dr. Robotnik. New members of the cast include Krysten Ritter, James Wolk, Sofia Pernas, Cristo Fernández, and Jorma Taccone, as well as Alyla Browne, who is said to be playing Maria.

Before we get to Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the next franchise installment will be Knuckles, a six-episode series set to premiere on Paramount+. The series takes place between the events of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and “follows Knuckles (Elba) on a hilarious and action-packed journey of self-discovery as he agrees to train Wade (Adam Pally) as his protégé and teach him the ways of the Echidna warrior.” Knuckles will debut this week on April 26th, followed by Sonic the Hedgehog 3 on December 20th.

Alex Maidy’s review for Knuckles went live on JoBlo this morning, saying the series “quickly devolves into an unnecessarily convoluted story about a character most people do not even remember who happens to hang out with Knuckles.” While that sounds like a drag, Knuckles isn’t without charm.

Are you excited about Keanu Reeves voicing Shadow the Hedgehog? Should Paramount build an Avengers-esque Sonic the Hedgehog universe? Let us know in the comments section below.

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