Sonic the Hedgehog 3 introduces Shadow as presumably a main antagonist, but it seems the ultimate lifeform will be sharing his limelight with Dr. Robotnik one more time. Variety reports that Jim Carrey is making a comeback in the upcoming third film.

Note: light Sonic the Hedgehog 2 spoilers ahead

Despite Dr. Robotnik seemingly meeting his demise at the end of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Carrey seeming pretty firm about retiring from acting after the film was released in 2022, a new teaser says otherwise. The official Sonic the Hedgehog movie X account revealed a short promotional video, embedded below, unveiling the Sonic 3’s logo (which is pretty much the Sonic Adventure 2 logo) featuring Carrey’s distinct Robotnik cackle at the end. The post's message of "You all thought I was gone, but I've just been underground. What you've seen from me is only a shadow of things to come..." is also pretty telling. 

You all thought I was gone, but I’ve just been underground. What you’ve seen from me is only a #shadow of things to come… pic.twitter.com/3W9Rh728Tt

— Sonic the Hedgehog (@SonicMovie) February 2, 2024

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 hits theaters on December 20. Jeff Fowler once again sits in the director’s chair, and the returning cast includes Ben Schwartz (Sonic), James Marsden (Tom Wachowski), Colleen O'Shaughnessey (Tails), and Idris Elba (Knuckles). Shadow’s actor has yet to be revealed.

Before the third film arrives, a live-action spin-off series starring Knuckles is launching on Paramount + sometime this year. As if 2024 wasn’t already looking good for Sonic, we recently learned that it’s the year of Shadow with the reveal of a new game, Sonic x Shadow Generations. Additionally, Sonic Superstars is getting a Shadow costume.

[Source: Variety]