"KNUCKLES" SMASHES RECORD FOR A PARAMOUNT+ TRAILER DEBUT IN FIRST 24 HOURS

All Episodes of the First TV Series in the Expanding "Cinematic World of Sonic the Hedgehog," from Paramount Pictures and SEGA of America, Will Be Available to Stream On Friday, April 26, Exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S.

February 9, 2024 - Yesterday's debut of Paramount+'s first official trailer for its upcoming original event series KNUCKLES has smashed the service's record for a trailer debut across all original programming on social platforms in the first 24 hours. The trailer also trended #1 yesterday on YouTube and #2 on Twitter in the U.S..

In addition to yesterday's official trailer, on Sunday, Feb. 11, an all-new KNUCKLES spot will debut during the broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII on CBS Television Network and live stream on Paramount+. The KNUCKLES Super Bowl spot will also be featured in Nickelodeon's special kids and family broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII, where Knuckles and some friends will make a surprise appearance.

The new live-action event series follows Knuckles (Idris Elba) on a hilarious and action-packed journey of self-discovery as he agrees to train Wade (Adam Pally) as his protégé and teach him the ways of the Echidna warrior. The series takes place between the films SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 and SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3.

In addition to Elba starring as the titular character, Adam Pally reprises his role from the film franchise as Wade Whipple. The ensemble cast includes guest stars Stockard Channing (The West Wing), Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones), Scott Mescudi (Don't Look Up), Ellie Taylor (Ted Lasso), Julian Barratt (Mindhorn), Rory McCann (Game of Thrones), Cary Elwes (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - DEAD RECKONING), Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future), Paul Scheer (Black Monday), and Rob Huebel (Childrens Hospital). Special guest star Ben Schwartz will reprise his role as Sonic, as well as special guest star Tika Sumpter, reprising her role as Maddie. Colleen O'Shaughnessey will also return as a special guest star in her role as Tails.

All of the key creative team from the previous films have returned for the series, including the films' director/executive producer Jeff Fowler, who directed the pilot episode and helped transition the film's signature cinematic animation style to television, as well as Neal H. Moritz, Toby Ascher, John Whittington and Toru Nakahara, who serve as executive producers along with Idris Elba. Additional directors for the series include Ged Wright, Brandon Trost, Jorma Taccone and Carol Banker.

The series was created for television by John Whittington and Toby Ascher, who is showrunning during production. Whittington, who wrote SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2, serves as head writer and wrote the pilot for the series. Additional series writers include Brian Schacter and James Madejski.

The combined global box office for SONIC THE HEDGEHOG and SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 stands at $725.2 million. On Paramount+, SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 is the top-performing Kids & Family film on the service in reach and is also one of the service's most re-watched films. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3 will be released in theaters on Dec 20th, 2024.

In addition to streaming exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S., Canada, the UK, Latin America, Australia, South Korea, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Japan, KNUCKLES will stream on SkyShowtime in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Spain and Central and Eastern Europe. The series is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

About Paramount+

Paramount+, a direct-to-consumer digital subscription video on-demand and live streaming service, combines live sports, breaking news and A Mountain of Entertainment(TM). The streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel. Paramount+ with SHOWTIME(R), the service's cornerstone plan, is also home to SHOWTIME(R) content, including scripted hits and critically acclaimed nonfiction projects and films. This premium plan includes unmatched events and sports programming through the local live CBS stream, including golf, basketball and more. All Paramount+ subscribers have streaming access to CBS News Network for 24/7 news and CBS Sports HQ for sports news and analysis. For more information about Paramount+, please visit www.paramountplus.com, and follow @ParamountPlus on social media.

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