It’s right there in the name. The first word in fact. So many times, movies, shows, or comics have focused on the “mutant”, “ninja,” or “turtles” aspects of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. But what about their ages? We know that they’re teenagers, but are those awkward years ever the focus? Well, they most certainly were for the team behind Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, and they brought it to life in a very unique way.
For the first time ever, actual teenagers were cast to play the turtles in the new animated film, out August 2. Brady Noon is Raphael, Nicolas Cantu is Leonardo, Shamon Brown Jr. is Michaelangelo, and Micah Abbey is Donatello. But from there, director Jeff Rowe let the kids record all their voice sections together, and it changed the whole tone of the film.
Below, you can watch some of that magic take place and see what the teenagers behind these Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles really look like.
As you can tell from just that brief clip, having the four actors in the same room gives a whole new energy to the film. They brought words and phrases the older writers didn’t know, as well as plenty of goofing off, to the sessions, which were then animated for the film. As a result, Mutant Mayhem really stands out from all the other Turtle movies that have been seen before.
Plus, their co-stars aren’t bad either. Joining the four turtles in the films are Hannibal Buress, Rose Byrne, John Cena, Jackie Chan, Ice Cube, Natasia Demetriou, Ayo Edebiri, Giancarlo Esposito, Post Malone, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, and Maya Rudolph.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem opens in theatres September 7.
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