The Cast of Keanu Reeves’ Shadow The Hedgehog Got Even Better Before Sonic 3

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will see Keanu Reeves take on the role of Shadow, with his casting made even better by a recent update on the film. Sonic the Hedgehog 3The release date is set for December 20, 2024 and will conclude the live-action video game trilogy. While there is always the possibility of more stories, the films have slowly evolved into the story of Shadow the Hedgehog from Sonic vs. Keanu Reeves, which means it could serve as an end point for the entire franchise.

Regardless of whether the franchise continues or not, the cast reunited for Sonic 3 It’s incredibly exciting. Ben Schwartz returns as the titular hedgehog, with Idris Elba and Colleen O’Shaughnessey returning as Knuckles and Tails, respectively. Although the end of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 implying that Jim Carrey’s Robotnik was dead, the actor came out of brief retirement to reprise his iconic role. Most of all, though, anticipation is focused on the casting of Reeves as Shadow the Hedgehog, a fan-favorite character. This was always a great casting choice, but Reeves’ understanding of the process makes it even better than anyone thought.

Keanu Reeves’ Shadow Voice lawsuit is reassuring news for Sonic fans

Reeves treated the source material with respect

Despite Reeves’ casting as Shadow in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 being received with a lot of positivity, there was also some cause for concern. Many have raised the possibility that Shadow simply sounds like, well, Keanu Reeves. While this would undoubtedly work, this possibility risked the chance of Shadow not being his own character, with Reeves unintentionally breaking the film’s immersion given how iconic his voice is. However, a recent update by Sonic the HedgehogLive-action director Jeff Fowler erased many of these concerns.

Fowler recently appeared on Sonic Revolutionlivestream event to tease what can be expected from Reeves’ Shadow. Fowler stated that, firstly, fans do not need to worry, as “he [Reeves] It was so fantastic to work with him. I think he thinks the character is amazing, I think he definitely understood what we wanted.” However, it’s Fowler’s next set of comments that should be enough to reassure fans that Reeves was the right choice for Shadow.

Fowler claims that Reeves didn’t treat the job simply as an easy voiceover job. Instead of getting into the booth, reading what was in the script and leaving, Fowler said Reeves wanted to create a faithful version of the character. Apparently, the actor did his own research into Shadow’s plot and implemented that into his voice acting. This is incredibly refreshing for audiences to hear, as it proves that Reeves will not only bring his own voice to the character of Shadow, but also imbue him with what makes the character so iconic from the source material.

The Sonic The Hedgehog Movies So Far Have Done “Stunt Casting” Right

Reeves continues a promising aspect of the live-action Sonic films

This look at Reeves’s voice acting process for Shadow proves another positive aspect of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise: used stunt doubles correctly. In this case, stunt casting does not refer to literal stunts, but is a term used in modern Hollywood to indicate the casting of a famous actor to improve publicity for a particular film or TV show. Specifically in voice acting, this term tends to be used – often in a negative way – when a celebrity known for live acting is hired instead of a professional voice actor in an animated film.

However, the Sonic the Hedgehog the franchise used stunt casting well. Ben Schwartz and Idris Elba fit perfectly into their roles as Sonic and Knuckles, respectively, bringing their own hype to the role while also making them true to what has come before in the franchise. Now, it looks like Keanu Reeves’ casting will do the same with the character of Shadow. While there was a possibility that this was a serious case of stunt doubles, Reeves’ dedication to honoring the source material continues the positive trend for the Sonic films.

Keanu Reeves as Shadow was an obvious but perfect casting choice

Reeves was often fancast as Shadow

When it comes to Reeves’ casting in Sonic the Hedgehog 3It’s worth noting how obvious this choice was. When Shadow appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 2In the post-credits scene, many began to theorize about who could be cast in the role. Perhaps the two most common actors brought up were Hayden Christensen and Keanu Reeves. This proves how obvious Reeves’ casting was for Sonic the Hedgehog 3. However, obvious doesn’t always mean bad, with Reeves proving to have the perfect, husky, deep voice for the role, while also honoring what has come before in the franchise.