Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is getting some early hype-up from the main star of the cinematic franchise, Ben Schwartz, who provides the voice for the titular Blue Blur. The newly released second movie, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, hit the big screen last month and received generally positive reviews from critics and audiences. It also became the highest-grossing movie based on a video game in the United States.
The next installment of the series is hinted at in the mid-credits scene of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, in which two agents of the Guardian Units of Nations (G.U.N. for short) are seen discussing a 50-year-old file that was uncovered. This file apparently contains the coordinates to a secret research facility. Confined within this laboratory is Shadow the Hedgehog (monikered "Project Shadow" by one of the agents), who is then briefly seen opening his eyes. They glow with a scarlet, raw power and an angry expression before the scene cuts to black.
In an interview with The Playlist, Schwartz gave the smallest tease of the excitement that Sonic the Hedgehog 3 has in store. He also gave some high praise to Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and touched on how proud he is of the fact that general audiences are enjoying his voice work, which is something he has been doing for 17 years. Read his full quote below:
“It’s very exciting and surreal. I’ve been doing voiceover since 2005, so it feels really exciting that something I did in the VO world is starting to hit with people and people are getting excited by it.”
“For [‘Sonic 2’], we blew it out so much, and for ‘3,’ it’s going to be bananas, it’s going to be crazy! I can’t wait.”
Shadow the Hedgehog has been a major character in the Sonic video game franchise since 2001. An artificial creation, many of his stories revolve around his quest to find the meaning of his existence, as well as his rivalry with the Blue Blur. Shadow has always been seen as an antihero in the Sonic games when he isn't acting as a villain. Along with the upcoming third theatrical installment, Paramount is also working on a series focusing on Knuckles the Echidna (Idris Elba) coming to their Paramount+ streaming service.
Given that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 featured not only the classic team-up of Sonic, Tails (Colleen O'Shaughnessey), and Knuckles against Dr. Eggman (Jim Carrey), but also the first sighting of Super Sonic, one can only imagine what Sonic the Hedgehog 3 must have in store now that Shadow is entering the fray. Fans have been putting their two cents in on who they think should voice the infamous antihero, the most popular pick being Keanu Reeves. One thing's for sure: fans of Sega's mascot series who loved the second movie are waiting on the edges of their seats for any announcements regarding the future of this cinematic franchise, and Schwartz's words will only build up more excitement.
Source: The Playlist