Knuckles Rotten Tomatoes Score Ties Sonic Sequel for Franchise High

This weekend will bring the debut of Knuckles, a new television miniseries spinning out of the hit Sonic the Hedgehog films. The Paramount+ exclusive series has promised to deliver a wild new story for Idris Elba’s Knuckles, and it looks like it has already debuted on a positive foot. 

At the time of this writing, Knuckles currently holds a 69% positive score on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes. This means that Knuckles is tied for the highest-scoring entry in the Sonic franchise thus far, with Sonic the Hedgehog 2 also holding a 69% rating. The first Sonic the Hedgehog, meanwhile, only holds a 64% rating.

What Is Knuckles About?

Set between the events of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Knuckles follows Knuckles (Idris Elba) on a hilarious and action-packed journey of self-discovery as he agrees to train Wade (Adam Pally) as his protégé and teach him the ways of the Echidna warrior. 

The cast of Knuckles also includes Stockard Channing (The West Wing), Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones), Scott Mescudi (Don’t Look Up), Ellie Taylor (Ted Lasso), Julian Barratt (Mindhorn), Rory McCann (Game of Thrones), Cary Elwes (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING), Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future), Paul Scheer (Black Monday), and Rob Huebel (Childrens Hospital). Ben Schwartz reprises his role as Sonic the Hedgehog, with Colleen O’Shaughnessey also returning as Tails and Tika Sumpter reprising her role as Maddie.

Will There Be a Sonic the Hedgehog 3?

A third Sonic the Hedgehog film has already been greenlit, and is currently scheduled to make its debut in theaters in December of this year. Plot details surrounding Sonic the Hedgehog 3 are currently unknown, other than that the film is expected to fully introduce the fan-favorite antihero Shadow the Hedgehog. Schwartz, Elba, O’Shaughnessey, and Sumpter will all return, as well as James Marsden, Lee Majdoub, Tom Butler, and Jim Carrey as Robotnik. Krysten Ritter and Alya Browne have joined the cast in currently-unknown roles.

“I don’t know anything about it. I know Jim Carrey said that he might retire,” Schwartz previously told ComicBook.com about Sonic the Hedgehog 3. “I hope that we all get to come back and do another one because I would love it,” Schwartz explained. “That’s one of my favorite characters, so my hope of all hopes is that all of us come back and we get to make another one, and then we get to add a Shadow. I hope that it keeps going. I hope that I keep doing it because I love that. I love that franchise so much.”

Knuckles will premiere exclusively on Paramount+ on April 26th.