When you look at the current year of massive hit films, with “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” being the biggest film of 2023 thus far and “Barbie” scoring the biggest opening weekend of the year, it’s starting to seem as if there’s quite a bit of nostalgia going around. So, it makes sense that Paramount is already seeing dollar signs with the forthcoming release of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.” The film’s marketing has been incredibly well-received, and the film seems poised to have a big box office run. Confidence is so high, over at Paramount, the studio has already begun the process of expanding this new rebooted franchise.
According to Variety, Paramount has already begun development on a sequel film and spinoff series for “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.” The idea would be for the spinoff series to debut on Paramount+ and act as a “bridge” between the two films. The series would run for two seasons as the filmmakers continue work on a sequel to ‘Mutant Mayhem.’
“In the nearly 40 years since ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ launched into the zeitgeist, it has entertained generations of fans and only continues to grow,” said Paramount and Nickelodeon boss, Brian Robbins. “We are excited to grow TMNT’s legacy in partnership with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg at Point Grey, and Jeff Rowe, who are innovating the franchise with their singular brand of humor and elevated storytelling for audiences everywhere, across virtually every platform.”
Ramsey Naito, president of Paramount Animation & Nickelodeon Animation, added, “Reinvigorating this franchise has been years in the making, and we are thrilled to continue expanding the beloved ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ universe and bringing new adventures to families and fans.”
As mentioned, this is a huge show of confidence in the new reboot, produced by Rogen and Goldberg and directed by Rowe. The film has yet to make one dollar, but Paramount sees the writing on the wall and knows it has something potentially special on its hands with ‘Mutant Mayhem.’ The film, which clearly borrows its style and attitude from the mega-successful ‘Spider-Verse’ franchise over at Sony, as well as Rowe’s previous film, “Mitchells vs. the Machines,” is the latest attempt to reinvigorate the ‘TMNT’ franchise, which has seen a number of previous iterations over the past four decades.
Obviously, plans could change if ‘Mutant Mayhem’ is a complete bust. However, at this point, it appears Paramount is expecting the best and is already planning for the future. “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” is expected to hit theaters on August 2.
