As if casting Idris Elba in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 wasn’t enough of a scoop, this year’s third Sonic movie will reportedly see the eternally youthful Keanu Reeves take on the role of Shadow.
That’s according to The Hollywood Reporter, which has little else to say about the news beyond the fact Reeves’ appearance in the Sonic 3 has been corroborated by “multiple sources”.
Shadow the Hedgehog made a brief post-credits appearance in 2022’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 movie, and reportedly resurfaced again last week in new Sonic 3 footage shown during Paramount’s behind-closed-doors CinemaCon 2024 presentation – but, with the character having no dialogue in either sequence, his voice actor has remained shrouded in secrecy.
Assuming The Hollywood Reporter’s sources are right about Reeves, he’ll be joining returning cast members Ben Schwartz, Jim Carrey, Idris Elba, James Marsden, Lee Majdoub, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Tom Butler, and Tika Sumpter in Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Other cast additions include Krysten Ritter, Jorma Taccone, James Wolk, Sofia Pernas, Cristo Fernández, and Alyla Browne, who’ll be playing Maria Robotnik from Sonic Adventure 2.
Sonic 3 debuts in US cinemas on 20th December this year, marking the latest step in Paramount’s plans to turn the Sonic films into “Avengers-level events”. Sega is also doing its bit for Shadow, releasing Sonic x Shadow Generations – a remaster of the 2011 platformer with new Shadow-themed stages – on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and PC this autumn.
