Credit: Paramount Animation / Nickelodeon MoviesA teaser for TMNT: The Last Ronin movie will have you shouting, “Go, ninja, go!”
The comic book series “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin” (2020 — present), a darker take on the titular half-shell heroes, has made waves within the comic book world and the ever-growing TMNT fandom since it emerged from the sewers four years ago.
Not only does the incredibly popular graphic novel reunite fans with the true vision of the Ninja Turtles, harkening back to the “Mirage Comics era” courtesy of co-creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, but it also made its way onto The New York Times best-sellers list.
In fact, “The Last Ronin” has been such an enormous hit for IDW Publishing that it’s already enjoying its third series, “The Last Ronin — Re-Evolution” (2024), which follows the second series, “The Last Ronin — Lost Years” (which includes the one-shot comic book “Lost Day”).
But that’s just the print side of things.
Beyond the world of comic books, the alternate TMNT tale, which depicts a grim, dystopian futuristic New York City in which a lone surviving Ninja Turtle sets out on a one-way mission to avenge the deaths of his three brothers, is now being adapted into a live-action movie.
Earlier this year, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Paramount Pictures is developing an “R-rated” adaptation of “The Last Ronin” comic books, which will be completely unrelated to the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem cinematic universe.
Former head of DC Films, Walter Hamada, will produce the film through his production company, 18hz. Child’s Play (2019) and Boy Kills World (2024) writer Tyler Burton Smith has been brought in to pen the script, which will be based directly on the comic.
While it hasn’t been confirmed, presumably, “The Last Ronin” co-writers Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz will be brought onboard as consultants. The comic is also being turned into an ambitious “Triple A” video game, although no release date has been set for either project.
Either way, news of the film has left TMNT fans — especially the OG generation — shell-shocked. There have been back-and-forth talks about a big-screen Ninja Turtles project geared towards adults for decades, but now, that dream is finally coming true.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023) was a huge hit last year, taking a substantial slice out of the global box office ($180.5M against its $70M budget), but there’s clearly room for the darker side of the franchise to enjoy some time in the sun, too.
Mutant Mayhem might have also created a new generation of fans while keeping diehard ones entertained, but suddenly, the original fans aren’t as interested in the upcoming theatrical sequel or the 2D-animated TV series follow-up heading for Paramount+.
Beyond the announcement in April, it will likely be some time before we get any new updates for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin (TBA). However, in the meantime, it looks like some of the more talented fans will keep us entertained with exciting fan films.
A brand-new short film from YouTube channel Anime Fire certainly gives us a slice of what we can expect from the actual upcoming live-action movie, while also teasing a return of the fan-favorite practical suits from the widely loved 1990 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
“The Last Ronin: Death Wish — Prologue (Live Action)” pits the title character — who wears a practical suit — against Foot Soldiers, AKA “Synjbots,” intercut with scenes in which the comic’s main villain Oroku Hiroto is in combat training.
Check out the film below, but be warned that it contains spoilers regarding the identity of The Last Ronin:
Like the comic, the film depicts a dystopian futuristic New York in which Michelangelo/The Last Ronin (Dade Elza) takes on the Synjbots, android law-enforcers who work for the dictator Oroku Hiroto, the grandson of The Shredder who uses technology to do his bidding.
Meanwhile, Oroku (Selwyn Huqueriza), who is training with his henchmen, becomes aware of Michelangelo’s activities.
When we cut back to our half-shell hero, he’s visited by the ghosts (or hallucinations that are the result of post-traumatic stress disorder, as it’s not entirely clear in the comics) of his brothers, Raphael (Colin K. Bass), Donatello (Kal Smith), and Leonardo (Mike Mittleider).
The video’s description reads, “In a dystopian future, the foot clan has successfully wiped out all who would oppose them, and Oroku Hiroto, grandson of the original Shredder, rules New York City with an iron fist. But hope is not lost! A lone hero remains The Ronin. Will he avenge his fallen brothers and take back the city or die trying?”
The film is directed by John Tieng, written by Dade Elza, produced by Colin K. Bass, and executive-produced by Michael Mittleider.
While an excellent teaser for the actual film, “Death Wish” isn’t the first fan-made TMNT: The Last Ronin movie — that honor goes to Speedokaggen’s CG-animated short “TMNT: The Last Ronin Animation,” which has amassed 7.1M views since its premiere last year.
This short film features a fully CG-rendered Michelangelo/The Last Ronin, who’s mourning the deaths of his fallen brothers, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael, and his father, Splinter, in the old Turtles lair in the New York City sewers. Watch it now:
Elsewhere on YouTube, director and designer John Likens has so far given us two bite-size action shorts that reimagine the Jim Henson costume design from the original live-action film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) using photorealistic computer animation.
The first, titled “TMNT: Donatello: Test Footage,” pits Donatello against the Foot Soldiers:
The second, “TMNT: Leonardo: Test Footage,” finds Leonardo battling his foes in a burning city street:
Related: R-Rated ‘TMNT’ Movie Everything We Know: Plot, Cast, Trailer, Release Date, and More
Will The Last Ronin Use Practical or Digital Effects?
It remains to be seen how the upcoming movie intends to create its Ninja Turtle characters. While The Last Ronin will revolve primarily around the sole surviving Turtle, it will still feature the three fallen brothers in the form of several flashbacks and hallucinations.
Fans have been calling for the return of practical suits — specifically costumes with animatronic heads like in the first three live-action movies from the ’90s — for decades.
However, though the designs themselves were met with backlash from fans, the two Michael Bay-produced reboots Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), boast highly impressive CG and motion capture.
But perhaps the filmmakers will opt for something in between — preferably something along the lines of the two John Likens “test footage” videos, seeing as they give us the Jim Henson costumes from the original 1990 live-action movie but in CG form.
Recently, “The Last Ronin” co-writer Tom Waltz expressed his desire to see Judith Hoag reprise her role as April O’Neil from the 1990 film (there’s certainly scope, as April is a recurring character in the ongoing comic book series).
If this happens, the reboot could serve as a distant legacy sequel to the 1990 film. Now that’s what you call having your pizza and eating it.
Would you like to see The Last Ronin movie’s Turtles re-created using motion capture and CG again or practical effects like those in the original live-action movies? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!