Nick Offerman is the first new name to watch for. You might know him as Ron Swanson from Parks & Rec, a role he made famous with his stoic demeanor. Ben Kingsley needs no introduction and is sure to bring his signature blend of gravitas and charisma to his currently undisclosed role in the film. Returning members from the previous films include Keanu Reeves as Shadow and Jim Carrey as Dr Robotnik, alongside other popular names who have been a part of the story so far.

The title reveal doesn’t disclose any further information on the film’s plot, although it’s in capable hands with Jeff Fowler returning to the helm. However, we do know that Metal Sonic is going to be a part of it, and that it’s probably going to focus on the Sonic CD storyline, although nothing is set in stone at this point.

For now, the title reveal should tide you over until we hear more news. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 hits theaters in the United States on March 19, 2027.

Bell will voice Amy Rose, the high-spirited hedgehog whose obsession with Sonic can rise to absurd levels, leading to comical situations between the two. We last saw her in Sonic 3’s mid-credits scene, where she rescues him from a bunch of clones that look a lot like Metal Sonic, continuing the film’s tradition of introducing new characters while the credits roll.

Rose often declares herself as Sonic’s girlfriend, although he’s generally opposed to her feelings for him. Bell joins a cast of talented actors who have been bringing the Sonic universe to life, with Idris Elba, Keanu Reeves, James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, and Jim Carrey set to reprise their roles in the upcoming movie. Speculation is that it could feature a modified storyline from Sonic CD, the 1993 game where Amy made her first appearance alongside Metal Sonic.

The film premieres on March 19, 2027, so it’s still a long time away from its theatrical release. However, SEGA might just have a new Sonic game in the works to tide you over until then.

As for any concrete details, Paramount has been quiet about what we can expect from this event film. Even its title has been kept under wraps, since it wasn’t officially referred to as a new entry in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. The fact that it will be an event film in the Sonic Universe, however, also implies that it might end up being a much grander outing than what we’ve seen so far.

This secrecy has ultimately led to fan speculation about what the movie could be about. Considering the successful appearance of Shadow the Hedgehog in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, however, many fans are considering the possibility that this new event film might be a full-on standalone release featuring Shadow as played by Keanu Reeves. This would also open up the possibility for Sega and Paramount to bring in some of the side characters that are more closely associated with Shadow rather than Sonic, like Rouge the Bat, for example.

As for the other untitled project, once again, Paramount hasn’t quite revealed what we can expect from this Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie. The company has, however, confirmed that it will be helmed by Neal H. Moritz, who has been credited as being the brains behind the Sonic the Hedgehog movies so far. The movie is set to make use of a combination of live action and CG animation footage, much like Sonic the Hedgehog, and will feature the four eponymous Ninja Turtles – Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo.

The fourth movie in the Sonic the Hedgehog movie franchise was announced as coming to theatres on March 19, 2027. At the time, it was the only film slated for release on that day as per Paramount’s plans. While no real details about it have been confirmed so far either, the main cast is largely expected to return to reprise their roles, including Ben Schwartz once more playing Sonic.

The Sonic the Hedgehog movie series has proven to be incredibly successful, with Paramount confirming back in January that the trilogy had crossed the $1 billion mark in the worldwide box office. The first movie was released all the way back in 2020, with its sequel getting released in 2022. The first two films alone had accounted for $725.2 million in the worldwide box office. The third movie, released in December 2024, had let the franchise hit the $1 billion milestone by making $312 million in the worldwide box office.

For more details about the movie series, check out the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 movie pack DLC that was released for Sonic X Shadow Generations back in December 2024.

The 2027 release window for Sonic the Hedgehog 4 was originally revealed alongside the movie’s announcement back in December. The announcement came shortly before the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 3.

While no details about the movie have been revealed so far, it would be safe to assume that the main cast will once again reprise their respective roles, and that Ben Schwartz will once more take on the role of Sonic.

The previous movie in the franchise had a star-studded cast as well, featuring the movie debut of Shadow the Hedgehog, who was voiced by Keanu Reeves. The movie also featured Dr. Robotnik, with Jim Carrey coming out of retirement to reprise the role.

Earlier this month, Carrey also spoke about reprising the role in the future, saying that he would be open to idea down the line. Carrey explains that he would reprise the role if the idea presented to him for the character would sound fun enough.

The Sonic movies have been incredibly successful, with Paramount Pictures revealing earlier this month that the franchise had made more than $1 billion in the worldwide box office. Even the most recent release, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, managed to earn $312 million worldwide.

While the movies have been incredibly successful, Sega boss revealed back in December that Sonic Superstars was a disappointment with regards to sales expectations. Originally released in 2023, Sonic Superstars failed to see the sales figures that other recent titles in the franchise, like Sonic Frontiers got.

This hasn’t stopped Sega from working on more Sonic games, however, with the company having announced a new Sonic Racing title back in December. The game, dubbed Sonic Racing: Crossworlds, will be coming to PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch, and will have players partake in high-speed arcade racing as various characters from throughout the Sonic franchise.

Speaking in an interview with Cinema Today (spotted by @sonicstadium on Twitter), Carrey said that he remains “open to the idea” of returning to once again play Dr. Ivo Robotnik in future Sonic the Hedgehog movies- depending, of course, on whether he’s interested in the ideas presented to him.

“I’m definitely open. I’m open to the idea,” he said. “Generally, they come to me with the next idea, and if I go, ‘that sounds fun’, then I’ll do it. I don’t feel locked to anything in life unless it’s something that interests me.”

“I certainly love this crew,” Carrey added. “I love this gang that makes these movies, and I love the fans. I think there’s a lot of really great energy around it.”

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 launched in theaters worldwide last month and has enjoyed critical and commercial success since then. Shortly before its release, Sega and Paramount Pictures announced that a fourth Sonic movie had also been officially greenlit, and is due out in 2027.

BREAKING: In an interview with the Japanese news site @cinematoday, Jim Carrey has confirmed that he is “open” to coming back for #SonicMovie4 and that he’s not retiring but “power napping” between projects. #SonicNews #SonicMovie3 pic.twitter.com/qhcbIy3SnZ

— The Sonic Stadium ✪ 25 YEARS OF SONIC NEWS (@sonicstadium) January 3, 2025

Reported by Variety, Paramount Pictures and Sega have announced that they’re working on Sonic the Hedgehog 4. The movie is currently targeting a spring 2027 theatrical release, so we’ll be waiting for it a while. Presumably, we can expect the majority of the main cast to reprise their roles (hopefully including Keanu Reeves as Shadow the Hedgehog, who makes his debut in the imminent third movie), though it should be interesting whether that also applies to Jim Carrie (Dr. Robotnik), who came out of retirement to star in Sonic 3.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3, meanwhile, is releasing imminently. Out in theaters worldwide on Friday, December 20, it’s enjoying strong critical reception, holding a RottenTomatoes score of 87 percent after 63 reviews at the time of writing.

Death Egg Robot – Sonic 4 Episode 1

While we’d all like to forget this game and pretend that Sonic Mania is the real Sonic 4, Sega did play around with the idea of episodic titles using that loaded name. The final boss lifts the iconic Death Egg Robot nearly wholesale from Sonic 2. Nearly. When on the final hit, the mad doctor will stomp one more time, and crumble the entire floor beneath the player with no warning, unless they somehow know when and how to intercept that attack, they’re back to the start of the boss rush.

Influences

What exactly inspired Sonic’s rather garish look? As it turns out, the overall colour scheme of his boots is based on Santa Claus’s outfit (with the design inspired by Michael Jackson’s boots). His blue colour was meant to match Sega’s logo at the time but his attitude? Well, that’s based off Bill Clinton’s “Can do” persona back when he was at the centre of US politics.

Ahead of the 25th anniversary event that Sega are holding for their mascot tomorrow, they have gone ahead and made Sonic the Hedgehog 4, the divisive 2D sidescrolling revival of the classic style Sonic franchise, playable on the Xbox One via the console’s backwards compatibility feature.

Both episodes will be playable on the console; unfortunately, infinitely superior games, such as Sonic Generations, which was on the Xbox 360, are as of yet not a part of the backwards compatibility list. Hopefully, Sega get on that before the end of this year- there is no better way to celebrate Sonic’s silver jubilee than playing what might be the best 3D Sonic game there is.

Other games that have been added to the backwards compatibility list are Capcom Arcade Cabinet, Pac-Man Museum, Bionic Commando Rearmed 2, NeoGeo Battle Coliseum, Crystal Defenders, and Fret Nice. 

Sonic‘s 25th anniversary event is tomorrow, when presumably a new game will be announced to commemorate the occasion. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for further coverage on it.

Sega West CEO Mike Hayes said while talking to VG247 that info about Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 will be arriving “very soon.” He couldn’t say how soon, but he’s asked players to “look out for that one.”

Episode 1, which launched 1 year ago, sold very well, according to Hayes. It sold well “on all platforms, iOS and console download.”

“It did very well and it continues to do well,” said Hayes. “Particularly when it gets a little shot in the arm with some promotion or some price activity, sales are quite phenomenal. Its downloaded clearly over a million units, so its sold particularly well and continues to sell.”

Sta tuned for more info.