After that initial controversy over Sonic’s character design was sorted out, 2020’s Sonic the Hedgehog turned out to be hugely popular with lovers of the blue-furred speedster as it managed to capture the core appeal of the games. The incoming Sonic the Hedgehog 2 promises to be even better by featuring Sonic’s sidekick Miles “Tails” Prower (Colleen O’Shaughnessey) in a much bigger role and introducing Idris Elba as the — strangely sexy — echidna warrior Knuckles.
Gamers are already primed to go crazy for the sequel, then, but this new poster for the movie will only please them more. Releasing alongside the final trailer, which just dropped this Monday morning, the poster showcases Ben Schwartz’s heroic hedgehog posing with his buddy Tails as Jim Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik looms above them, clutching onto a giant red “2.” Check it out via the tweet below:
The cool thing about the trailer is that it’s a close recreation of the poster for the original Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Sega game, which came out back in 1992.
The classic references don’t stop there. Those who know their stuff quickly realized that Knuckles’ reflection in the “2” serves as a callback to his eyes peering out of the shadows on the cover of 1994’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which marked his first appearance in the games.
From what we’ve seen so far, Sonic 2 seems to be heavily inspired by the third game, thanks to the inclusion of Knuckles and having him team up with the Eggman. Just like in the game, Robotnik is looking to get his wicked hands on the Master Emerald, which Knuckles is sworn to guard. In Sonic 3, the villain tricks Knuckles into thinking Sonic is the one after the Emerald, however, which is why they come to blows. Something similar looks to be playing out in the movie’s version of events.
Don’t miss Sonic the Hedgehog 2 when it races into theaters on April 8.