Plans for a third Sonic the Hedgehog film were announced in February 2022 during
ViacomCBS's investor event before the release of the second film. Due to the
2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, filming for animated characters began in July 2023 in
Surrey,
England, while filming with physical actors began in November of that year in
London, with production concluding by March 2024. The film will draw heavy inspiration from the video game Sonic Adventure 2 (2001).
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is scheduled to be theatrically released by
Paramount Pictures in the United States on December 20, 2024.
Keanu Reeves as
Shadow the Hedgehog: An anthropomorphic red-striped black hedgehog resulting from a secret government program called Project Shadow.[4]
Live-action cast
James Marsden as Tom Wachowski, the adoptive father of Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, and the sheriff of Green Hills,
Montana.[3]
Tika Sumpter as Maddie Wachowski, Tom's wife, the adoptive mother of Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, and the local
veterinarian of Green Hills.[3]
"If the angels bring some sort of script that’s written in gold ink that says to me that it’s going to be really important for people to see, I might continue down the road, but I’m taking a break."
–Jim Carrey on what would influence him to come out of retirement for Sonic the Hedgehog 3[9]
On March 6, 2020,
James Marsden confirmed that he had signed on for multiple sequels.[10] In April 2022,
Jim Carrey–who portrays
Dr. Robotnik in the films–announced that he was considering retiring from acting.[11] With his possible retirement, Moritz and Ascher confirmed that his role as Robotnik would not be recast in any sequels if he followed through with his retirement plans. However, they remained hopeful that they could develop scripts good enough for him to continue the role.[12]
Second-unit filming began in late July 2023 for animated characters only without physical actors (due to the
2023 SAG-AFTRA strike) in
Farnham,
Surrey,
England.[16]Principal photography was originally scheduled to begin on August 31, 2023, in
London, England,[17][18] but was delayed to September of that year.[19] Production with physical actors started on November 29, 2023, announced with a teaser image of
Shadow the Hedgehog's
stand-in statue used in filming.[20] Marsden said that filming had been completed by March 14, 2024,[21] while Fowler officially revealed that the film had wrapped production on March 29.[22]
Animation
As a cost-cutting measure, the producers had an in-house animation team at Paramount work on both Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and the Knuckles series.[23]
Music
In December 2023,
Crush 40 vocalist
Johnny Gioeli said there had been talks of including the song "Live & Learn" from Sonic Adventure 2 (2001) in the film.[24] In January 2024,
Tom Holkenborg, who also composed for the first two films, was announced to be returning for the film.[25] The following month, Gioeli confirmed "Live & Learn" would be included in the film.[26]
Release
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will be released theatrically in the United States by Paramount Pictures on December 20, 2024.[27]