Sonic The Hedgehog’s Post Credits Scenes And What The Ending Means For The Future
Let’s discuss the ending of Sonic the Hedgehog and what the post-credits scenes mean for any future installments.
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Despite the initial uproar over the character design, which led to a delay and massive overhaul of the film pre-release, Sonic the Hedgehog delivers a decently fun family movie. Not the deepest or most complicated film ever created, it should delight its younger target audience. If you stuck around after the ending, you got two Sonic the Hedgehog post-credits scenes to further add to the fun
Based on an expansive IP that includes not only the Sega games, but also movies, a series, and more, the obvious goal is for Sonic the Hedgehog’s ending to kick off a larger franchise. The movie’s opening weekend box office totals seem to have opened the door for that to actually happen.
Sonic The Hedgehog At The Box Office
Sonic the Hedgehog had a big opening weekend, earning $57 million in the United States in just it’s first 3-day weekend period from Friday through Sunday. To put that in context, last weekend Birds of Prey, which theoretically had more buzz going in, only opened with $33 million. And this weekend Birds of Prey lost half its audience and only managed $17 million against Sonic’s big take.
Sonic the Hedgehog only cost $85 million to make, and that includes the rather expensive cost to redo some of the special effects at the last minute to keep Sonic from looking too creepy. The movie is already well on its way to making that budget back, just in US Box Office receipts alone. By the time all the international receipts are counted, Sonic the Hedgehog will be profitable and a big hit.
With that box office success in mind, let’s discuss the ending of Sonic the Hedgehog and what the post-credits scenes mean for any future installments.
*It should go without saying, but if you haven’t seen the movie, we’re going to Sonic The Hedgehog’s Ending. Be warned.*
The ending of Sonic the Hedgehog is pretty straightforward and self-explanatory.
After leading Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) on a world-wide chase using his ring portals, Sonic (voiced by Ben Schwartz) winds up back in Green Hills, Montana, where he’s hidden out for years. There, he teams with Tom (James Marsden), Maddie (Tika Sumpter), and the rest of the residents to send Robotnik packing through another portal.
And everything is great. Now that he’s living out in the open, Sonic has the friends he’s always dreamed of. With a new purpose, Tom decides to stay in Green Hills because it’s special, his home, and the people need him. Sonic moves in with Tom and Maddie and gets his own room. The government even stops hunting both Sonic and Tom and gives them an Olive Garden gift card as a bit of an “our bad” for accusing Tom of terrorism.
If the franchise goes no further, this is a satisfying end. The narrative ties up, everyone is happy, there are no pressing concerns that need to deal with right now. If there’s no sequel, it won’t feel like there’s all that much left unfinished.
That said, they definitely set the stage for more with what happens after the credits.
Sonic The Hedgehog’s Post-Credits Scenes
There are not one but two additional scenes in Sonic the Hedgehog. Technically they’re mid-credit scenes, not post-credit scenes, but that’s really a semantic distinction.
Post-Credits Scene One
We know Dr. Robotnik was banished from Earth and sent to the mushroom world Sonic was originally trying to get to. His ultimate fate was unclear at the end, though since we didn’t see him die, we assume he’s still alive out there. And the first Sonic the Hedgehog post-credits scene confirms this.
The first stinger picks up with Robotnik looking more like the character we’re familiar with from the games and animated series. Though he also looks a lot like Colonel Kurtz from Apocalypse Now. He’s bald and goggled, and his mustache, which was elaborate before, is now all kinds of bushy and crazy looking.
While his ship is ruined and he’s marooned, he still has a massive IQ and Sonic’s quill as a power source. With a maniacal bend, he sets off and proclaims he’ll be home by Christmas. And who’s going to bet against him?
This Sonic the Hedgehog post-credits scene mostly serves to remind viewers that Robotnik is still out there, alive, and very much a potential threat. If he’s so inclined, no one would be surprised to see Jim Carrey return for another go-round. In fact, now that he’s disgraced, deranged, and even more pissed off at Sonic, the not-so-good Doctor is probably even more of a threat should he escape from the fungi planet.
Post-Credits Scene Two
While the first post-credits scene in Sonic the Hedgehog gives us more on a character we already know, the second introduces a new face. Or at least as far at the movie is concerned.
In the mountains surrounding Green Hills, a ring portal opens up and a creature steps through carrying what appears to be a tracker of some sort. It’s revealed to be a two-tailed fox. A two-tailed fox Sonic devotees will know as none other than Miles “Tails” Prower.
Tails talks into a communication device, which indicates he has pressing business to discuss with Sonic, and that he hopes he isn’t too late to enlist his help. He then flies away thanks to his rapidly twirling tails.
The crowd at my screening gasped when Tails stepped into the frame. For those unfamiliar with the precocious fox, he’s been Sonic’s sidekick/ride-or-die bestie since Sonic the Hedgehog 2 landed on consoles worldwide. Across multiple games and other media, he’s served as Sonic friend and ally, and it doesn’t appear he’s after Sonic for nefarious reasons.
Sonic The Hedgehog Box Office
So far, reviews have been generally positive—it currently sits at 64% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. Some estimates predict it could earn $64 million dollars in its initial four-day run over President’s Day weekend.
Sonic cost between $85-95 million dollars, which compared to many other major studio tentpoles, is relatively modest. It’s unclear whether that amount includes the $5 million to redesign the character after the internet explode following the first trailer, but either way, it wasn’t nearly as expensive as many other films.
Sonic The Hedgehog’s Future
Sonic the Hedgehog has done well at the box office and that means there’s money to be made in a sequel. Sonic the Hedgehog also has a high profile internationally. Paramount could be looking at a nice payday if things continue to go well. If they do, you better believe the studio will try to capitalize on Sonic the Hedgehog’s post-credits scenes with more movie.
All of this obviously sets up future adventures for Sonic the Hedgehog and company. From what we get in Sonic the Hedgehog’s post-credits scenes, there are plenty of possible directions the next chapter could go. Both offer plenty of intrigue and room to speculate.
Reportedly Paramount is already working on just that and plans may already be underway for Sonic the Hedgehog 2. This source says the studio is already in negotiations with Dwayne Johnson to voice the iconic Sonic character Knuckles in the next movie.
One possibility raised by Sonic the Hedgehog‘s post-credit scenes is that Robotnik could team up with those echidnas we see hunting Sonic early on in the movie. They obviously want the blue hedgehog’s power, too. This could also provide the chance to introduce another popular character from Sonic lore, Knuckles the Echidna.
Knuckles could also serve as a gateway to another major storyline in the Sonic realm, the Chaos Emeralds. These are a collection of ancient, mystical gemstones, each with its own special power. They do things like provide power, allow you to transform, and bend time and space. They’re all controlled by one Master Emerald. And in the games, Knuckles has served as guardian of the Master Emerald. If he knows of their existence, it’s a sure bet Robotnik would love to add these stones to his arsenal.
This could also be what drove Tails to scour various realms in search of Sonic. Robotnik on the hunt for Chaos Emeralds would be a dire, urgent situation indeed. That’s all speculation, but if they want to go that way, it would definitely make sense.
It seems obvious, given that he’s still alive and his status as the game’s big bad, that Dr. Robotnik is sure to play a major antagonistic role in whatever comes next. We assume he finds his way off the mushroom planet in some capacity.
But does he go directly back to Earth? Does he make other stops along the way to enlist reinforcements and work out a plan? He’s not the only one in the galaxy who wants to get his hands on Sonic, so he might team up with one of the other interested parties. He is a lone wolf with a god complex, so that wouldn’t be easy, but he might also know that he needs help if he’s going to succeed.
One thing that remains unclear after Sonic the Hedgehog’s post-credits scenes is whether or not Sonic and Tails already know each other. My guess is probably not. We only see a glimpse of Sonic’s early life in the film, but we know he doesn’t have many friends, and that his caretaker does her best to keep him and his power hidden from prying eyes.
Still, if bad guys know Sonic exists and want his power, it stands to reason that good guys do as well. And in a major conflict, they could certainly use his powers to win the day.
