The last time Idris Elba appeared as a CGI anthropomorphic creature, it didn’t go well. Hell, the last time Sonic the Hedgehog was on the big screen, it didn’t go well. But the announcement that the actor would be voicing Knuckles in “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” has fans so excited that both “Cats” and 2020’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” have faded from memory – for the most part.
“The Suicide Squad” star broke the news on Tuesday when he tweeted a picture of Knuckles’ spiked fist with the caption, “Knock, knock…” Knuckles, full name Knuckles the Echidna, is Sonic’s friend and rival in the popular video game series. Elba’s casting lit up the Twitterverse almost immediately, leading to some rare unity on the social networking site.
Introduced in “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” in 1994, Knuckles was originally a rival of Sonic who is tricked by Dr. Eggman into thinking that the blue hedgehog is trying to steal the Master Emerald, a powerful gem that allows Knuckles’ island to float in the clouds. After realizing what Eggman has done, Knuckles teams up with Sonic to defeat the evil doctor, and since has become a mainstay and occasionally a playable character in the Sega video game series.
Elba joins a cast that already includes Ben Schwartz returning as Sonic and Jim Carrey as Dr. Eggman, along with James Marsden and Tika Sumpter. Jeff Fowler is directing from a screenplay by Pat Casey, Josh Miller and John Whittington. The film finished production in June and is set for release next April.
The reactions to the Knuckles news took many meme-able forms. First, there were the scores of vindicated “Sonic” fans that always knew the animated character was Black.
There were of course many commenters that couldn’t resist capitalizing on Elba’s viral “Hot Ones” meme.
Check out some other “Idris Elba IS Knuckles” highlights here.
