If TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM Gets a Sequel They'll "DARK KNIGHT It" Teasing Shredder

Shredder is not the main villain in the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem animated movie. This first story is going to be something very different from anything we’ve seen before in a TMNT story, which I’m excited about. But, if the creative team does get to make a sequel, it sounds like that movie could involve the Ninja Turtles’ franchise villain, Shredder.

During an interview with SFX magazine, co-director Jeff Rowe teased Shredder’s involvement saying: "We'll Dark Knight it.” He went on to say that he'd 100% love to develop a sequel and shared: "When you've grown and you've become confident as a teenager, to then go up against a foe that is three times scarier than anything you've ever seen before, that's interesting and dramatic."

The Dark Knight is in reference to The Joker being introduced in Christopher Nolan’s Batman sequel. As you know, Shredder is the archenemy of the Ninja Turtles' mentor Splinter, and his real name is Oroku Saki, and he’s been portrayed in a lot of different ways over the years. It’ll be fun to see what they do with him in this latest film franchise, and I hope we get to eventually see him in action!

When talking about putting the teenager into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, he said: "We wanted a teenager to watch the movie and feel seen by it and understood. That was our cornerstone for everything, like making the Turtles not hulking, ripped versions of themselves, but lanky and awkward. That carried through into casting actual teenagers. It's insane that it had never been done before."

I do love how these characters are portrayed in the film and the fact they are portrayed as actual teenagers gives the film an incredibly fun and unique vibe.

In Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, after years of being sheltered from the human world, the Turtle brothers set out to win the hearts of New Yorkers and be accepted as normal teenagers through heroic acts. Their new friend April O’Neil helps them take on a mysterious crime syndicate, but they soon get in over their heads when an army of mutants is unleashed upon them.

When previously talking about the tone of the film, director Jeff Rowe revealed the vibe they were going for:. “We wanted it to be like Stand By Me and Lady Bird. But, you know, with Ninja Turtles.”

The voice cast of the film includes Micah Abbey as Donatello, Shamon Brown Jr. as Michelangelo, Nicolas Cantu as Leonardo, Brady Noon as Raphael, Jackie Chan as Splinter, John Cena as Rocksteady, Seth Rogen as Bebop, Ice Cube as Superfly, Rose Byrne as Leatherhead, Natasia Demetriou as Wingnut, Ayo Edebiri as April O’Neil, Giancarlo Esposito as Baxter Stockman, Post Malone as Ray Fillet, Paul Rudd as Mondo Gecko, and Maya Rudolph as Cynthia Utrom.

The Seth Rogen-produced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem hits theaters on August 4th.