A new live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is in the works from Paramount studios. Neal H. Moritz, who is best-known for producing the Fast and Furious and Sonic the Hedgehog franchises, is spearheading the project.
For those hoping to see a more R-rated approach will be disappointed. Instead of mirroring the Mirage Studios’ comic books of the 80s – which were filled with edgy language and explicit violence – Paramount is taking a more “family friendly” approach. In fact, they’re even cancelling the R-rated, live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, which was announced last year (via Variety).
The general plot follows four mutated turtle brothers – Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael – trained in ninjutsu by their rat mentor Splinter, as they emerge from the sewers of New York to battle evil.
The success of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic book and animated series sparked a wave of live-action adaptations, starting with the gritty, Jim Henson-enhanced, Golden Harvest-produced 1990 film (and its two sequels in 1991 and 1993). Their live-action presence continued on television in 1997’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation and later resurfaced in the form of the Michael Bay-produced films in 2014 and 2016.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was created in 1984 by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. In addition to the comic books, cartoons and movies, the franchise has spawned a toy line and several video games. The live-action movies alone have generated over $1.35 billion at the global box office.
We’ll keep you updated as we learn more. Until then, here’s the Trailer to the original 1990 film:
Paramount is making a big mistake cancelling The Last Ronin live action movie project. Thy hype behind The Last Ronin will cause this new film to not make as much money. I don’t have anything to back this up, it’s just a theory
Yeah, it is a mistake. We’ve already seen the Turtles when they’re appropriate for children over and over again. Paramount shouldn’t be worried about an R Rated Turtles being a problem. There’s room for both.
But whatever this project is, I hope it’s made with competence.