Sonic spin-off Knuckles drops its first trailer, complete with a 30-year-old throwback

Knuckles
(Image credit: Paramount)

The first trailer for the Sonic the Hedgehog spin-off show Knuckles has dropped, and it's super fun. 

The show, which was announced back in February 2022, is set between Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and the upcoming threequel. 

The trailer shows Knuckles hilariously adjusting (or not adjusting, really) to regular life, but even outside of turning the living room into a gladiator arena, it's not all smooth sailing. There are some sinister villains after Knuckles, but luckily, he seems powerful enough to go toe to toe with them. Most excitingly, though, Knuckles has his iconic cowboy hat from the Sonic the Hedgehog OVA that debuted in '96. Yay! See the trailer below. 

Idris Elba will reprise his role as Knuckles for the series, with the rest of the cast including Adam Pally, Ellie Taylor, Julian Barrat, Edi Patterson, Scott Mescudi, Rory McCann, and Tika Sumpter.

Pally is playing Wade Wipple, as he does in the movies, and the series is set to see Knuckles agree to "train Wade as his protégé and teach him the ways of the Echidna warrior," according to the logline (H/T Variety). 

Sonic the Hedgehog 3, meanwhile, is coming this December 20. Jim Carey is back as Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, with other returning cast members including Ben Schwartz as Sonic, Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Tails, Elba as Knuckles, James Marsden as Tom, Sumpter as Maddie, Natasha Rothwell as Rachel, and Shemar Moore as Randall. 

Newcomers to the cast are Krysten Ritter, Cristo Fernández, Jorma Taccone, Sofia Pernas, James Wolk, and Ayla Browne. Who's playing Shadow in the movie is a mystery for now, though. 

While you wait for the Sonic threequel, check out our guide to all the upcoming major movie release dates to get planning your theater trips for the year. 

Molly Edwards
Senior Entertainment Writer

I'm a Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.