Ahead of the release of the highly anticipated sci-fi adventure movie "Sonic the Hedgehog 2," producers Toby Ascher and Neal H. Moritz have opened up about the Sonic cinematic universe and shared the idea behind the expansion.

The producers revealed that in order to create a Sonic cinematic universe, they will introduce new characters like Tails and Knuckles. These characters might be new to movie fans, but they are already quite popular among video gamers.

"We're creating a Sonic cinematic universe, so we knew we were going to add characters, like Tails and Knuckles; new to the films but beloved by gamers all over the world," Ascher told EuroGamer on Tuesday.

Moritz also explained the idea behind expanding the Sonic cinematic universe: "[Sonic 1] was a great experience for us as filmmakers, and as movie lovers. Now, we're even more excited to expand that world, adding new characters, bigger worlds, a new, incredible journey, and more action and adventure."

"There are so many places we can go with Sonic," he added.

The first installment of the franchise, "Sonic the Hedgehog," was released in June 2020. The movie was an adaptation of the video game series of the same name. Video game company Sega was one of the developers of the game.

Sega CEO Haruki Satomi, who also serves as a producer of the movie franchise, said, "We've got a remarkable partnership with Paramount and we are excited to continue expanding the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise with them."

Paramount Pictures shared the trailer of "Sonic the Hedgehog 2" featuring Jim Carrey as Dr. Ivo Robotnik last December.

Ben Schwartz will lend his voice to Sonic's character, while Idris Elba and Colleen O'Shanussy will be voicing Knuckles and Tails respectively. The movie will also feature James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Natasha Rothwell, Adam Pally and Lee Majdoub.

The trailer ended with an intense battle between Knuckles and Sonic. It introduced Knuckles for the first time in the movie franchise. Though many people were upset with the first installment of the movie as it wasn't that exciting, the sequel's trailer has been well-received.

"Sonic the Hedgehog 2" is slated to release on April 8.

Sonic The Hedgehog  - Ring
Sonic the Hedgehog holds a shiny golden ring in a screenshot from the upcoming live-action film. Sega