Sega and Paramount have given fans a look at the logo for the upcoming third Sonic the Hedgehog movie, and some are noticing a surprise connection to 2001’s Sonic Adventure 2 in its design. The first two live-action Sonic the Hedgehog films were an overwhelming success, and the post-credits scene for last year’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 confirmed that the next installment will feature the cinematic debut of Sonic’s dark rival Shadow the Hedgehog. The self-proclaimed Ultimate Life-form was shown awakening from stasis following the defeat of Jim Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik, much to the surprise of fans not expecting Shadow to appear until much later in the series.

Still, Shadow’s emergence has sparked much speculation about how Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will portray Sonic’s brooding doppelganger, with the most talked about point naturally being who will voice him on the big screen. While the identity of Shadow’s actor is still being kept under wraps, an official social media account for the live-action Sonic the Hedgehog movies recently posted a close-up image of Shadow’s signature Air Shoes and an updated logo for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 as shown on a movie clapper that also featured the names of director Jeff Fowler and cinematographer Brandon Trost.

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While this recently released image is igniting discussion about Shadow’s design, some fans have noticed an interesting connection between the logo near his foot that ties back to his initial video game appearance, as reported by The Gamer. Twitter user SLOplays posted an enhanced close-up of this Sonic the Hedgehog 3 logo, which they note looks strikingly similar to the one for Sonic Adventure 2. The logo features hedgehog-like spines in the colors of Sonic and Shadow above and below the “Sonic 3” text, just like the one for Adventure 2.

As mentioned before, Sonic Adventure 2 marked the very first appearance of Shadow the Hedgehog, making it all the more fitting for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 to pay homage to it. There, Shadow was introduced as a villain, joining forces with the nefarious Dr. Eggman and fellow newcomer Rouge the Bat on a mission to conquer the world. Shadow would eventually redeem himself and become a reluctant ally to Sonic and his friends, and even starred in the infamous Shadow the Hedgehog spin-off game in 2005.

It remains to be seen how the next Sonic the Hedgehog film will adapt Shadow’s surprisingly dark and tragic backstory from Sonic Adventure 2, but it looks like the upcoming movie will draw heavy inspiration from the 2001 Sega Dreamcast classic if its similarly-designed logo is any indication. Fans will still have to wait a while longer for Shadow’s debut on the big screen, as Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is currently set to race into theaters on December 20, 2024.

Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog is a prolific game franchise that started life on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. Covering both 2D and 3D iterations through the generations, Sonic is known for speedy movements and interesting platforming mechanics.