"KNUCKLES" KNOCKS OUT NEW GLOBAL RECORDS WITH PARAMOUNT+ DEBUT

All Episodes of the First TV Series in the Expanding "Cinematic World of Sonic the Hedgehog" from Paramount Pictures And SEGA of America, Are Now Streaming Exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S.

May 2, 2024 - The debut of Paramount+'s original event series KNUCKLES smashed numerous records over its premiere weekend, including setting a new global record as the most-watched Paramount+ original series of all time with more than 4M hours streamed over premiere weekend. In addition to its overall record, the series marks Paramount+'s most-watched kids-and-family title ever.

The series launch also had a halo effect on other Sonic the Hedgehog titles on the service, with viewership up more than 278 percent globally over the daily average.

"The Sonic the Hedgehog fans came out in full-force," said Jeff Grossman, Executive Vice President, Programming, Paramount+. "We're so thrilled with the record-breaking performance of KNUCKLES and the incredible lift the whole Sonic universe has experienced following KNUCKLES' premiere."

KNUCKLES, a six-episode event series and the latest in the "Cinematic World of Sonic the Hedgehog" from Paramount Pictures and SEGA of America, 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 as Wade Whipple his role from the film franchise. 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 reprises his role as Sonic, as well as special guest star Tika Sumpter, reprises her role as Maddie. Colleen O'Shaughnessey also returned 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 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, Idris Elba, Haruki Satomi, Shuji Utsumi and Toru Nakahara, who also served as executive producers. 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 ran the show during production. Whittington, who co-wrote SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2, served 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-and-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+, part of Paramount's (Nasdaq: PARA, PARAA) global portfolio of multimedia entertainment and news brands, is a direct-to-consumer digital subscription video on-demand and live streaming service, combining 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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