Warning! This article contains minor spoilers for the Knuckles TV show.

Summary

• Knuckles tells a self-contained story with exciting cameos from Sonic characters, subtly setting up Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
• Knuckles and Wade's friendship is central to the show, exploring their dynamic as they venture across the United States.
• Sonic and Tails make brief appearances, along with familiar faces like Maddie and Ozzie the Dog.

The Jim Carrey's return as Robotnik, the show mostly stands on its own.

This is primarily due to Knuckles' story taking place outside of Green Hills. Led by Idris Elba and Adam Pally in Knuckles' voice and live-action cast, the show sees Knuckles and Wade Whipple venture to Reno so that the latter can learn the ways of the Echidna warrior. While much of the show centers on new characters connected to Wade and Knuckles, it still includes some familiar faces despite Knuckles' self-contained nature. With that said, here is every Sonic the Hedgehog movie character that appears in the Knuckles spin-off show.

Knuckles' story picks up shortly after the events of Sonic the Hedgehog 2.

7 Knuckles the Echidna

The warrior of the Echidna stars as Knuckles' main character.

As is evident by the show's title, Knuckles is the primary character of the show who returns from the Sonic the Hedgehog movies. Knuckles was introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 as an Echidna dedicated to protecting the Master Emerald. This saw him being manipulated by Doctor Robotnik into fighting against Sonic and Tails before he eventually was shown the error of his ways and realized Robotnik was the true threat to the Master Emerald. Sonic the Hedgehog 2's ending saw Knuckles aid the hedgehog in defeating Robotnik, leading into Knuckles' story.

Knuckles is naturally the most prevalent character from the Sonic the Hedgehog movies to appear in the spin-off show.

In Knuckles, the titular character naturally takes up the bulk of the screen time. The story primarily explores how Knuckles is struggling to adapt to life on Earth, with his warlike ways clashing with the somewhat idyllic life in Green Hills. As such, Knuckles takes the Echidna on a road trip across the United States to meet various people, experience many things, and eventually come to accept Earth as his home. With this story serving as the basis of the entire show, Knuckles is naturally the most prevalent character from the Sonic the Hedgehog movies to appear in the spin-off show.

6 Wade Whipple

Knuckles' new ally is also from the Sonic the Hedgehog movies.

Aside from the titular character's personal arc, the biggest aspect of the show's story is the friendship between Knuckles and Wade Whipple. In the Sonic the Hedgehog movies, Wade is primarily utilized as a side character. Wade is often shown as the bumbling coworker of Tom Wachowski, aiding Sonic and his friends and multiple points though rarely having an impact on the overall franchise or its individual stories.

Wade has the most screen time of the entire Knuckles show.

With Knuckles, however, this changes as Wade Whipple becomes a main character. Second only to Knuckles himself, Wade has the most screen time of the entire Knuckles show. This is primarily due to Wade's journey to becoming a braver, more confident person. Knuckles accompanies Wade on the latter's trip to Reno so that the Echidna can teach him the ways of being a warrior, something that spirals into Knuckles' road trip story with Wade at its center.

5 Sonic the Hedgehog

The blue speedster appears in Knuckles' first episode.

As was confirmed in the first official trailer for the spinoff, Sonic the Hedgehog himself appears in Knuckles. After the ending of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic is shown once again living in Green Hills. The show begins with Sonic attempting to reckon with Knuckles' more destructive ways, having a talk with his newfound ally about how Earth can be a beautiful place to call home if the Echidna lets it. This is what kickstarts Knuckles' story, meaning Sonic has a somewhat integral role in the first episode.

Sonic is once again voiced by Ben Schwartz.

That said, Sonic's appearance in Knuckles is certainly best described as a cameo. After Knuckles leaves Green Hills in the first episode of the show, Sonic the Hedgehog does not appear again. This is logical, as Knuckles is squarely focused on developing the titular character as opposed to anyone else. Nevertheless, Sonic the Hedgehog's appearance in Knuckles is a good way to establish the show's timeline, all while potentially teasing a stronger bond between the two in Sonic the Hedgehog 3.

4 Tails the Fox

The lovable sidekick of Sonic appears in Knuckles.

As was the case with Knuckles, Tails the Fox first appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. While he was teased in Sonic the Hedgehog's post-credit scene, the second movie was where Tails became an integral character in the franchise. Much like Sonic, Tails has come to call Earth his home and lives a relatively peaceful life in Green Hills at the beginning of Knuckles, voiced once more by Colleen O'Shaughnessey.

Like Sonic, Tails' role in Knuckles is only a minor cameo in the show's first episode. Tails is shown living as part of the Wachowski household, also having to deal with Knuckles' more destructive nature. This means that Tails only has a few minutes of screentime in Knuckles, though this will undoubtedly be rectified upon the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 where Tails will almost certainly be a primary character.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will be released in theaters on December 20, 2024.

3 Maddie Wachowski

A primary human character from the Sonic the Hedgehog movies makes an appearance.

The Sonic the Hedgehog franchise has largely followed a similar formula to movies like Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in that the otherworldly characters are often accompanied by humans. In Knuckles' case, this human character is the aforementioned Wade Whipple. In Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2, this character was Tom Wachowski, played by James Marsden. While Marsden's Wachowski is absent from Knuckles, Tika Sumpter makes an appearance as his wife Maddie, who possesses one of the Sonic the Hedgehog.

After grounding Knuckles for his behavior, Maddie leaves for work and is not seen again in Knuckles' story.

Maddie is another primary human character in both Sonic the Hedgehog movies. Just as the blue speedster and his flying fox companion do, Maddie has a brief cameo appearance in the first episode of Knuckles. With Maddie essentially acting as the mother to Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles after Sonic the Hedgehog 2, she is shown attempting to be a good parent to Knuckles who is struggling with life on Earth. After grounding Knuckles for his behavior, Maddie leaves for work and is not seen again in Knuckles' story.

2 Ozzie the Dog

The animal companion of Sonic the Hedgehog plays a role in Knuckles.

One recurring character of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is Ozzie the Dog. Ozzie is the canine companion of Tom and Maddie and appeared in the first two movies. While Ozzie's role is never integral, he acts as a close friend of Sonic whom the blue speedster spends a lot of time with, especially in the opening of Sonic the Hedgehog 2.

In Knuckles episode 1, Ozzie the Dog plays a similar role. The dog is often utilized as a humorous companion of Knuckles, with the latter attempting to teach the former the ways of an Echidna warrior. From being stranded on the roof by Knuckles to serving as a champion in an Echidna-built fighting pit, Ozzie's inclusion is a hilarious continuation of his role in the Sonic the Hedgehog movies.

1 Pachacamac the Echidna

The former leader of Knuckles' clan makes a formal appearance in the show.

Much of Knuckles' character arc in the show surrounds his desire to fulfill the wishes of his clan. Knuckles furthers the Echidna's backstory by delving deeper into his clan's war with the owls, something teased in Sonic the Hedgehog's opening and Sonic the Hedgehog 2's main story. Knuckles wishes to continue the ways of the Echidna, as taught to him by Pachacamac, the chief of his tribe. Interestingly, while this is initially positioned as simple motivation for Knuckles, Pachacamac appears in the show.

Pachacamac first appears as a spirit-like apparition, showing himself to Knuckles and pushing his former student to take on an apprentice of his own. Pachacamac says that, if Knuckles teaches someone the ways of the Echidna, the tribe may once more flourish after being previously destroyed. This is what sets Knuckles on the path of teaching Wade Whipple the ways of the warrior, thus beginning the plot of Knuckles.

Pachacamac is voiced by legendary Back to the Future actor Christopher Lloyd in the Knuckles spin-off series.

Pachacamac then appears once more in Knuckles episode 4. In this episode, Wade has a vision that teaches him what it means to be a warrior, linking to Knuckles' past as a true member of the Echidna tribe. Pachacamac appears in this vision as the one who explains this history to Wade, giving the former a somewhat larger role than the likes of Ozzie, Maddie, Tails, or Sonic.

Concerning where Pachacamac appeared in the Sonic the Hedgehog movies, his role is interesting. Pachacamac was not named or explicitly shown in Sonic the Hedgehog, though it has since been confirmed that he appeared in the opening of the 2020 film. In this scene, Sonic's history with Longclaw is shown, tragically culminating in the two being separated due to an attack by the Echidna clan. Pachacamac is shown in this scene as one of the Echidna targeting Longclaw and Sonic, though his role in Knuckles is significantly less dark and more lighthearted.