We’re less than three weeks away from the arrival of Sonic The Hedgehog 3 in theaters, and fans can’t wait to see what it’s like on the big screen. As you likely know by now, the film will feature the live-action debut of Shadow The Hedgehog, and his presence and backstory will have a huge impact on the film at large. Oh, and we’re not just talking about how he’s voiced by Keanu Reeves, though that definitely helps. Instead, we’re talking about how the movie will go deep into the lore of Shadow and his creator, Gerald Robotnik, and how their pain fuels their master plan.
Director Jeff Fowler knew that this was the only way for the film to go, and thus, as he noted on Twitter, the very first piece of concept art for Sonic The Hedgehog 3 was the iconic, and arguably traumatic, image of Shadow and Maria being together before everything goes horribly wrong.
While that might sound like a “big boast” about Shadow’s impact on the franchise, it’s actually incredibly accurate. In the original games featuring Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Dr. Eggman, the plots and storylines were incredibly simple. They were just about getting through levels and beating up the “good doctor” via the character’s incredible speed and power.
However, when Shadow was introduced, the team knew that they had the opportunity to do a deep storyline that would push the franchise into new directions and allow for greater lore to be told. Sure enough, the arrival of Sonic Adventure 2 proved that gamble to be a huge success, and many still crave the epicness that was that game in modern titles.
So, for the movie to try and capture everything that this particular game did is very interesting, and it’ll be worthwhile to see if they can pull it off. After all, the first two games had very emotional moments but were still rather silly in tone at times, especially with the human elements. The third movie has the chance to push the yardsticks forward in a big way and possibly set up further narrative tales in the future.
Currently, there aren’t any confirmed projects outside of the third film. However, if early projects for its box office success hold, Paramount will undoubtedly continue forward. Jeff Fowler has even admitted that there are teases as to who might come next if the films, or spinoff series, are allowed to push on. The film arrives on December 20th.
