What to know:
- The first two Sonic movies were given a “Fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.
- The social media embargo has already been lifted and the review embargo will be lifted on December 18 at 9am ET / 6am PT.
- Most video game movies have struggled to receive a “Fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Sonic is speeding into theaters for his third movie, Sonic the Hedgehog 3. The action-comedy is based on the iconic Sega video game series.
The film arrives in theaters on Dec. 20, 2024, and top prediction markets are betting on the movie’s Rotten Tomatoes score. On Polymarket, the trading volume for the market is at $13,782. Currently, the most likely score range is 70-79 with a 42% chance but 60-69 is not close behind with 37%.
Here’s what you need to know before betting on Sonic the Hedgehog 3’s Rotten Tomatoes score.
What is ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 3’?
Paramount Pictures has released a new Sonic movie every two years since 2020. With the latest movie, Keanu Reeves joins the cast as the fan-favorite franchise character, Shadow the Hedgehog. The film follows:
Sonic the Hedgehog returns to the big screen this holiday season in his most thrilling adventure yet. Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails reunite against a powerful new adversary, Shadow, a mysterious villain with powers unlike anything they have faced before. With their abilities outmatched in every way, Team Sonic must seek out an unlikely alliance in hopes of stopping Shadow and protecting the planet.
Krystal Ritter is joining the cast as Director Rockwell, with Jim Carrey, James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Idris Elba, Ben Schwartz, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Natasha Rothwell, and Shemar Moore returning.
The film’s director, Jeff Fowler, teased this movie will set up a new character’s entrance for a possible fourth sequel if the film is successful.
Past critical reception of ‘Sonic’ and video game movies
Sonic has not performed badly among critics. It’s not a stellar score but both the first and second movies have “Fresh” scores in the sixties – 64 and 69, respectively. Critics believed both were good family movies, a good homage to lovers of the original video game and the hilarious Jim Carrey as the main villain, Dr Robotnik.
But Sonic is a video game movie adaptation, which traditionally have a bad rap among critics.
| Movie | Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer Score |
| Werewolves Within (2021) | 86% |
| The Angry Birds Movie 2 (2019) | 72% |
| Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022) | 69% |
| Pokémon Detective Pikachu (2019) | 68% |
| Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story (2023) | 65% |
| Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) | 64% |
| The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) | 59% |
| Mortal Kombat (2021) | 55% |
| Tomb Raider (2018) | 52% |
| Rampage (2018) | 51% |
On a positive note, both Sonic the Hedgehog movies are ranked in the top six video game movies but if you look at the others, it doesn’t look good. In Rotten Tomatoes’ list of 53 Video Game Movies Ranked by Tomatometer, only the top six movies are “Fresh.” Most of the movies on this list have a “Rotten” score of 35 or lower.
Even though The Super Mario Bros. Movie was the second highest-grossing movie of 2023, it still received a Rotten score of 59. Critics do not go easy on video game movies and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will have to prove itself.
There are however positive indications that the movie will improve its Rotten Tomatoes score.
Jeff Fowler's Rotten Tomatoes history
Jeff Fowler doesn’t have that much of a Rotten Tomatoes history. Besides directing all three of the Sonic the Hedgehog movies, he also directed the Paramount + series Knuckles (2024) which takes place in the same universe. This project received a “Fresh” score of 78.
While his limited experience may be worrisome, it can also be a sign of Fowler honing his craft and working on creating the perfect Sonic project. The second film was an improvement on the first one and was able to receive 5 more points for its Rotten Tomatoes score. Knuckles was an even larger improvement in terms of its score. And for Sonic the Hedgehog 3, maybe it’s like the saying goes – the third time’s the charm.
Perhaps Sonic the Hedgehog will be able to continue the momentum of its predecessors and score an even higher score. Early indications point to a positive reception.
The social media embargo was already lifted and critics have been sharing their first thoughts. So far, it seems positive. Screenrant’s Joseph Deckelmeier calls the movie a “perfect family movie,” and writer Rachel Leishman shares that the movie “ups the anti and reminds us why we love these movies.”
When a movie's social media review embargo is lifted, you can turn to X and TikTok for early insights into critics reactions while you wait for the review embargo to expire.
#SonicMovie3 is great! We get a double dose of Jim Carrey, who is brilliant! Keanu is fantastic as Shadow! This is the perfect family movie! These Sonic movies can’t go wrong. I only wish we got a little more Tika Sumpter & James Marsden! They really help ground these movies,… pic.twitter.com/keg5y1X44t
— Joseph Deckelmeier (@joedeckelmeier) December 10, 2024
The past Sonic movies’ critical reception, Fowler’s improvement streak, and positive early social media reactions are all indications of a “Fresh” Rotten Tomatoes score. However, the movie being a video game adaptation is a reason for caution. Will Sonic be able to outrun the critics this time around?
