While Jim Carrey hasn’t been confirmed to be coming back to play Dr. Robotnik in Sonic the Hedgehog 4, his return would make the next film’s true villain even more exciting. Sonic 4 isn’t coming out for a few years, so plot details are very limited, but we do know that both Metal Sonic and Amy Rose are going to be major players.
Robotnik’s sacrifice at the end of Sonic 3 was one of the best moments in that film, and it felt like a perfect sendoff for the character who has been in the franchise since the very beginning. However, Carrey has said that he is open to returning to the role, and that’s kept hopes alive that he’ll be in Sonic 4.
He was one of the most consistently entertaining aspects of the trilogy, so a return would be celebrated, even as the series moves forward and finds a new villain that can rival Robotnik. While there are many ways that Carrey’s bombastic villain could be seen again, one option would work great with Metal Sonic’s story – and borrow from the games.
Sonic 4 Should Introduce A Fake Robotnik Created By Metal Sonic
In the 2003 game Sonic Heroes, Metal Sonic created a fake version of Eggman to fool the heroes that were after him, so he could enact his own evil plans. Sonic 4 could easily do the same thing with Metal, making it seem like Robotnik had returned, only for it to be revealed that Metal was the true mastermind all along.
The most interesting way for this to come about would be to make Metal seem like a completely robotic servant to a version of Dr. Robotnik, nothing more than a simple creation to defeat Sonic. The film could then shake things up by revealing Eggman’s fake status and the master plan that Metal has concocted.
Revealing that all the trials that Team Sonic had to go through were orchestrated by Metal would be a great twist and nod to Sonic Heroes. That kind of twist would solidify Sonic 4‘s villain as one of the most formidable in the franchise and completely dispel the idea that he is just a mindless automaton.
While Sonic 4 is likely going to be based mostly on the game Sonic CD, the previous movies in the franchise have all been adapted from multiple games, making Sonic Heroes references very plausible.
As the Robotniks were the central threat throughout the first three Sonic movies, the next few in the series need to introduce someone as dangerous as them. Metal Sonic absolutely has the potential to be that villain, and pulling off this reveal would be the first step in that direction.
Jim Carrey’s return in Sonic the Hedgehog 4 would still be great for the entertainment value it would serve in seeing him play Robotnik one more time. But it’d be part of a larger plan to pave the way for Metal to take center stage in the years to come.