Sonic the Hedgehog 4 has officially been dated for release, with the film set to arrive on 19 March 2027. We already knew the adventure was on the way, thanks to some early celebrations from Paramount Pictures, but now we know it’s been locked in for a confirmed launch over two years away.
That’s about standard, based on past franchise iterations. The original film (2020) was followed by a sequel in 2022, and then a second sequel in 2024. Between Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog 3, we also got a standalone Knuckles spin-off – and it’s highly possible this could happen again.
With the next Sonic film over two years away, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 inspiring a new wave of Shadow the Hedgehog fever, could we see another spin-off taking place in the interim between films? There were certainly hits of this possibility in Sonic 3, so we’ll just have to wait to see what Paramount has planned.
In the meantime, there’s plenty of reasons to watch out for more news about Sonic the Hedgehog 4 – a film which appears to be going wilder than its predecessors.
Warning: Spoilers for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and its post-credits scenes follow. Don’t read ahead if you wish to remain unspoiled.
What do we know about Sonic the Hedgehog 4?
In one of the end credits scenes for Sonic the Hedgehog 3, we see the arrival of several Metal Sonics, which are then defeated by the hammer-wielding Amy Rose. With both characters originally debuting in Sonic CD, there’s plenty of speculation that Sonic the Hedgehog 4 could be inspired by this game.
While the original Sonic the Hedgehog took ample liberties with the beloved hedgehog’s story, its sequels leaned much further into established game lore. Sonic 2 was a fairly close adaptation of video games Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 (& Knuckles). Sonic 3 was a near-direct adaptation of Sonic Adventure 2. In both cases, the films adapted events relating to their newly-debuted characters, Knuckles and Shadow.
There is also a major clue about Sonic 4 hiding in recently-revealed concept artwork, revealing a scene originally set to appear in Sonic 3. What you first need to know is Sonic CD is a game about time travel, and sees Sonic attempting to rescue the magical Time Stones from Dr. Robotnik, who’s trying to use them to conquer the world.
Read: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 concept art reveals an alternative future
Newly-revealed concept art depicts Dr. Robotnik in some sort of ancient robe, with Metal Sonic by his side. In the context of the image, it appears that Robotnik has taken over a particular world of the past, and is lording over his subject.
While this scene was cut, it could indicate the future direction of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. We could very well see Robotnik attempting to rule the world by manipulating the time stream – and that final explosion at the end of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 could very well have been Robotnik being transported into the past (which would also explain the arrival of Metal Sonic).
Whatever the case, we’ll have to stay patient to see what’s next.
