Credit: Paramount PicturesTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023) will likely take theaters by storm over the next few weeks. This year has seen its fair share of blockbusters take a massive slice out of the box office, including Barbie (2023) and Oppenheimer (2023). However, it’s animated films that seem to be the dominant force of cinema in 2023.
Across the Spider-Verse (2023) caught $682.4 million on its web and became Sony Pictures Animation’s highest-grossing film, while The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) grossed $1.355 billion worldwide and became one of the highest-grossing animated films ever.
Needless to say, the CG-animated Mutant Mayhem stands a solid chance at success. The film is also being heavily marketed in a similar fashion to Barbie (minus all the many shades of pink, of course), which echoes “Turtle-Mania” from the early ’90s.
In fact, Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures are so confident Mutant Mayhem will turn in a huge profit that they’ve already announced the film is the first installment in a shared universe, with a 2D animated series set to follow the movie on Paramount+ this year.
So it makes sense that Nickelodeon isn’t letting anything stand in the film’s way — not even Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
It turns out Nickelodeon is king when it comes to the TMNT property, so much so that they appear to have already stopped another Ninja Turtles reboot from hitting the big screen, likely because it may interfere with the new Mutant Mayhem universe.
That reboot is “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin” (2020)…
What is “The Last Ronin”?
“The Last Ronin” is an ongoing comic book series from IDW Publishing, which has been churning out TMNT comic books since 2011. The series follows lone Ninja Turtle Michelangelo as he embarks on a one-way revenge mission to take on the man responsible for the deaths of his three brothers in a futuristic and dystopian version of New York City.
The series now also has a follow-up titled “Lost Years,” which details the preceding years in which Michelangelo embarks on a quest to become the Last Ronin while, in the present day, introducing four brand-new Ninja Turtles, Odyn, Yin, Moja, and Uno, who are under the tutelage of newly-appointed sensei, Casey Marie Jones.
At this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, it was revealed that “The Last Ronin II — Re-Evolution” (2023) will arrive later this year.
Related: ‘Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’ Full Characters and Cast Guide
Is “The Last Ronin” in a different universe?
“The Last Ronin” takes place in an alternate timeline now dubbed the “Ronin-verse.” However, it’s reasonable to consider that it follows on from the “present-day” IDW material, which is still ongoing.
The Ronin-verse is already expanding in the form of follow-ups such as “Lost Years,” the one-shot comic “Lost Day,” and the upcoming “Re-Evolution,” and also with many collectible action figures. There’s also a “Triple-A” video game in the works, although most fans would prefer a theatrical adaptation.
Related: New ‘Mutant Mayhem’ Teaser Could Anger ‘Last Ronin’ Fans
Will there be a “Last Ronin” movie?
Since it arrived in 2020, TMNT fans have been clamoring for a big-screen adaptation of “The Last Ronin.” In fact, fans have wanted a dark, gritty theatrical outing for well over three years. After all, this is the style and tone in which the Ninja Turtles first started in Mirage Comics, co-created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird in 1984.
Unfortunately, it looks like “The Last Ronin” won’t be getting the big screen treatment, or the small screen treatment for that matter — at least not anytime soon.
In an interview with ComicBook.com, Kevin Eastman discussed the fact fans have been hoping for a live-action adaptation of “The Last Ronin” but explained that Nickelodeon came up with the idea of going down the video game route instead.
“Nickelodeon, who has always been a great partner and great friend to all the things in letting us do what we do, they really didn’t want to take “The Last Ronin” concept into full on mainstream, like a big live-action movie, something to compete with Mutant Mayhem (which is gonna be phenomenally awesome),” Eastman explained. “They collectively came up with the idea of a video game because we could go all the way there. They could basically take it all the way into all things Ronin-verse. They’ve taken all the different drawings and moments… the stuff we’ve seen so far is goosebump city. It’s really phenomenal. They took stuff right out of the pages of the comic book.”
While Nickelodeon could easily adopt DC’s “Elseworlds” strategy, which isolates films such as Joker (2019) and The Batman (2022) from its shared universe installments, it looks like the universe established in Mutant Mayhem is their number one priority.
This may come as very disappointing news for fans of “The Last Ronin,” but there is a short, CG-animated, fan-made film on YouTube worth checking out. And then, of course, there’s the upcoming video game based on the ongoing comic book series.
Related: Dark and Gritty ‘Last Ronin’ Trailer Proves ‘Ninja Turtles’ Is the Next ‘John Wick’
When is “The Last Ronin” game out?
There’s currently no release date for “The Last Ronin” video game, though we do know it is inspired by the popular God of War video game series.
Earlier this year, Doug Rosen, Senior Vice President for Games and Emerging Media at Paramount Global, said the game would focus only on Michelangelo. However, he added that Raphael, Leonardo, and Donatello, who only appear in the comics through hallucinations and flashbacks, may also appear in a playable format in flashback sequences.
Rosen also said that the mature themes of The Last Ronin (TBA) would not be “dialed back to make the game something it shouldn’t be.”
Related: 10 Things We Want to See in an Open-World ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Game
As per IDW, here’s the synopsis for “The Last Ronin — Lost Years”:
RETURN TO THE RONIN-VERSE! In the smash-hit miniseries TMNT: The Last Ronin, readers were taken on a pulse-pounding trek through time — past, present, future — to witness the final gut-wrenching days of the Heroes in a Half Shell. For Michelangelo in particular, the march to his heart-breaking last battle was long and dangerous, taking him from New York City, to Japan, across Asia and Europe, and then back home again to administer final justice against those guilty of killing his family.
But what happened during those fateful years when he had only the need for vengeance and Master Splinter’s journal to guide him? What battles did he fight? What hard lessons did he learn? The time has come to find out as original miniseries writers Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz join artist Ben Bishop (TMNT: The Last Ronin) to finally reveal what adventures the Last Ronin experienced during his vengeful journey. While in the present, a new master, Casey Marie Jones, prepares her young terrapin students to be the next generation of… Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!
Related: Upcoming R-Rated ‘TMNT’ Installment Could Anger Same Fans Already Hating ‘Mutant Mayhem’
“The Lost Years” issues 1 — 4, and the one-shot, “The Lost Day,” are on sale now. “The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution” #1 will be released on December 13, 2023.
Mutant Mayhem releases in theaters on August 2. Check out the trailer below:
Related: Which ‘Ninja Turtles’ Characters Have Been Gender-Swapped In the Reboot?
As per Wikipedia, here’s the official synopsis for Mutant Mayhem:
After years of being sheltered from the human world, the Turtles 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 notorious crime syndicate, but they soon get in over their heads when an army of mutants is unleashed upon them.
Related: Is the New ‘Ninja Turtles’ Film Canon With Any of the Previous Installments?
Mutant Mayhem stars Nicolas Cantu (Leonardo), Micah Abbey (Donatello), Shamon Brown Jr. (Michelangelo), Brady Noon (Raphael), Jackie Chan (Splinter), Ayo Edebiri (April O’Neil), Seth Rogen (Bebop), John Cena (Rocksteady), Hannibal Buress (Genghis Frog), Rose Byrne (Leatherhead), Ice Cube (Superfly), Post Malone (Ray Fillet), Paul Rudd (Mondo Gecko), Maya Rudolph (Cynthia Utrom), Natasia Demetriou (Wingnut), and Giancarlo Esposito (Baxter Stockman).
Are you disappointed there won’t be a movie or TV adaptation of “The Last Ronin”? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!