Sonic Movies Ranked: Best to Worst

Sonic movies ranked from best to worst puts Sonic the Hedgehog 3 first, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 second and Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) third, and that order is my opinion, not a measurement. I weighed four things for each film: how well the story lands emotionally, how the ensemble is shared out, how fresh the comedy and set pieces feel, and how easy it is to put on for a family. The official rating handles age, and all three films carry a PG in the US, UK and AU, so none of them is a risky pick for school age children. Box office from Box Office Mojo and The Numbers appears as context only (a big gross says what people turned up for, not what is best), and the full figures sit on the sonic box office page.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024), directed by Jeff Fowler, is the best Sonic movie in my opinion, because it gives the series a villain with a wound instead of only a scheme. Shadow, voiced by Keanu Reeves, is captured by the military agency G.U.N. in 1974 and studied by Professor Gerald Robotnik, and his bond with Gerald's granddaughter Maria is what gives the film its heart. Jim Carrey plays both Ivo Robotnik and Gerald, which lets him be loud and gentle in the same movie (a range the first two films only hinted at). When G.U.N. Director Rockwell, played by Krysten Ritter, recruits Sonic, Tails and Knuckles to catch Shadow in Tokyo, the heroes meet an opponent with powers beyond anything they have faced, and the fight feels personal in a way the earlier ones did not. At 110 minutes it is also tighter than the second film. That being said, the notable songs list is thin compared with the first two, which is a small mark against it.

Sonic 2 (2022), also directed by Jeff Fowler, is the funniest and most crowd pleasing of the three, and it lands second mainly because it is the longest, running just over two hours. Eight months after Sonic sent Dr. Robotnik to the Mushroom Planet, Dr. Robotnik escapes and teams up with Knuckles, voiced by Idris Elba, who is hunting for the Master Emerald. Colleen O'Shaughnessey's Tails arrives to help Sonic, and in my view he supplies the warmest scenes in the film. The soundtrack's notable song is Kid Cudi's "Stars in the Sky". It could be argued that a trimmed middle stretch would have put this film level with the third.

Sonic the Hedgehog (2020), directed by Jeff Fowler, reached US theaters on February 14, 2020, after the release was pushed back and Sonic was redesigned, as CNBC reported. It starts with a young hedgehog hiding in a cave near Green Hills, Montana, where he spies on the friendly sheriff Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) and his wife Maddie (Tika Sumpter). When loneliness makes Sonic lose control of his speed and knock out power across the region, the military calls in Jim Carrey's eccentric Dr. Robotnik. It ranks third because it is the smallest in scale, with the lowest budget at $85 million and no Tails, Knuckles or Shadow yet. Even so, it earned about $320 million worldwide according to Box Office Mojo, and at 99 minutes it is the easiest of the three to start with for younger viewers. X Ambassadors' "Boom" is among its notable songs.

If you prefer a quick sonic movie tier list, this is where my ranking lands.

Sonic 4 is set for March 19, 2027 in the US, according to TheWrap, and Dexerto reports that filming began on March 2, 2026. Whether it can pass Sonic 3 is a question I will answer after release, and I will move the order if it earns that.

If you are choosing one film tonight, start with the first and follow the Sonic movies in order list. Lee Majdoub's Agent Stone appears in all three, which makes a nice running joke if you watch them back to back. The where to watch Sonic page shows current streaming options in the US, UK and AU, and the main Sonic movies page has every film in one place.