As “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” heads to theaters this evening, Paramount is already in development a fourth installment of the Sega video game series, with plans to release the film in 2027.
“Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” which was announced alongside a “Knuckles” Paramount+ series before “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” was even released in 2022, is expected to be the top money grosser this year for Paramount and for the Christmas season. The previous two Sonic films combined for $725 million at the global box office, with “Sonic 3” expected to be the first film to gross $500 million worldwide.
Current box office projections predict a $60 million-plus opening, but exhibitors tell TheWrap they now expect the threequel to blow by that after surprisingly positive reviews from critics, who gave it a current Rotten Tomatoes score of 85%.
As with past installments, “Sonic 3” teases what comes next in a mid-credits sequence that teases the arrival of a new character from the video game series, which has won over fans with a lengthy cast of heroes and villains. Details for “Sonic 4” beyond that sequence remain under wraps.
