Credit: Inside The MagicSince the live-action adaptation of IDW Publishing’s comic book series “The Last Ronin” was announced last year, fans have been buzzing with excitement. Not only is the comic book series hugely popular, but the film will be the franchise’s first-ever R-rated installment.
“The Last Ronin” takes place in a dark, dystopian future in which Michelangelo, the sole survivor of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, sets out on a one-way mission to avenge the deaths of his three brothers, Leonardo, Raphael, and Donatello, and father, Master Splinter.
The upcoming film adaptation falls under Paramount Pictures and is being produced by former DC Films head Walter Hamada through his 18hz company. Tyler Burton Smith, currently best known for 2019’s Child’s Play and Boy Kills World, is on screenplay duties.
However, other than the source material, we don’t know anything about the project. At this point, we don’t know whether the Ninja Turtles will be created using motion capture, or if the filmmakers intend to revisit those iconic costumes from the earlier live-action films.
Then there’s the casting. “The Last Ronin” co-writer Tom Waltz sparked excitement last year when he said he’d love to see original April O’Neil actress Judith Hoag from 1990’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reprise her role in the film, which would make it a legacy sequel.
Naturally, fans have also been busy fan-casting their favorite actors to play Michelangelo. Names have included Andy Serkis, who’s no stranger to mo-cap roles, having portrayed Gollum in The Lord of the Rings saga and King Kong in the 2005 epic of the same name.
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Shamon Brown Jr., who plays Michelangelo in the family-friendly blockbuster hit, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023), has even said he’d love to play the older, battle-hardened, and more brutal version of the Nunchaku-wielding jokester in the film.
But there’s one actor who keeps on popping up on Reddit discussions: Keanu Reeves. The beloved, legendary actor has starred in many films throughout his long career, but it’s fair to say that he’s most famous for the hugely successful The Matrix and the John Wick films.
At 60 years old, Reeves, a trained martial artist, by the way, has still got it. In the John Wicks films, he proves he’s more than capable of taking on action-heavy roles. Not unlike the Reeves-led actioners, The Last Ronin follows Michelangelo on a brutal revenge mission.
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But there are other reasons why Keanu Reeves is perfect for the role of The Last Ronin.
Having played time-traveling teenager Ted Logan in the cult classic Bill and Ted movies, he’s also no stranger to playing laid-back “cool dudes” — a quality that has yet to abandon him (oddly enough, he also played a “surfer dude” in the film Point Break).
The second reason is his voice. Reeves is oftentimes gruff and stoic, perfect qualities for playing the seasoned Ninja Turtle. He also recently brought “Shadow” to life in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024). Director Jeff Fowler reportedly cast Reeves due to parallels between his performance in the John Wick films and his vision for the character in Sonic 3.
It’s also worth noting that Sonic the Hedgehog 3 grossed $478.6 million worldwide. And the fact that Keanu Reeves starred in a film called 47 Ronin. Need we say more?
It’s highly likely that The Last Ronin film will cast an actor who can voice and physically portray Michelangelo in the same way Noel Fisher took on both duties for the character in the two Michael Bay-produced films, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016). So here’s to hoping Keanu is battle-ready.
There’s no release date for The Last Ronin film.
Would you like to see Keanu Reeves portray Michelangelo in The Last Ronin film? Or do you have another actor in mind? Let us know in the comments down below!