The latest trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 gives fans a closer look at the Blue Blur's aggressive rivalry with Knuckles the Echidna.
Unveiled during the Super Bowl, the trailer focuses on Dr. Robotnik's renewed plans to eliminate Sonic with the help of a fearsome new ally. The trailer includes various new clips, highlighting Knuckles competing against the Blue Blur in several arenas. As the two snowboard down the side of a steep mountain, Sonic quips that his adversary resembled "The Winter Soldier," a reference to the Marvel character Bucky Barnes who earned mainstream success in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The footage also includes a shot of what appears to be the Death Egg Robot, a machine fans will undoubtedly recognize from the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 video game.
Acting as a direct sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is expected to further build on the world established in the first film. Beyond the debut of Knuckles, fans can look forward to Miles "Tails" Prower playing a larger role in the story. While Sonic and Tails are canonically best friends in the video games, the film will seemingly chronicle the beginning of their relationship. Fans will also undoubtedly recognize the powerful Chaos Emeralds, mystical gems that have become a staple in the franchise. The official synopsis of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 confirms that the Chaos Emerald will serve as the movie's main object of focus as both Robotnik and Knuckles are hunting it in an attempt to gain infinite power.
Fans will undoubtedly be pleased to see that both Knuckles and Tails resemble their video game counterparts, avoiding the controversy sparked around Sonic's original design in the first film. Upon the release of the trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog, social media was flooded by posts expressing their anger towards the Blue Blur's more "realistic" features, including human-like hands and eyes. The backlash proved so visceral that Paramount redesigned the speedster, creating a version that looks more like the video game character players know and love.
Directed by Jeff Fowler and starring Ben Schwartz, Idris Elba, Colleen O'Shaughnessey, Jim Carey and James Marsden, with a script penned by Pat Casey and Josh Miller, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 bolts into cinemas on April 8.