Tales Of The Teenage Mutant Turtles Cast Hype Their Post-Mutant Mayhem Show

Set after the events of Mutant Mayhem, Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles follows Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey as the new heroes of New York. The boys finally have the chance to live their dreams as normal teenagers while balancing their responsibilities to the city they protect and each other. When a new threat appears, the Turtles will face a villain unlike any they’ve seen before, as they face new challenges that elevate them to become even better heroes.

Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brings new animation to this world that captures the essence of Mutant Mayhem, taking inspiration from how teenagers draw in their notebooks, but through 2D style. The series captures the dynamic action, comedic timing, heart, and teenage vibe perfectly with Mutant Mayhem stars Nicolas Cantu, Shamon Brown Jr., Micah Abbey, Brady Noon, and Ayo Edebiri reprising their roles as the young heroes. Co-showrunners Chris Yost and Alan Wan are no strangers to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and bring that knowledge to the series while taping into this already-established world and tone with fresh perspectives.

While at San Diego Comic-Con, Screen Rant caught up with the stars and showrunners of Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. They discussed finding Bishop’s voice and how Mikey grows after standing on his own as a hero. They also share their dream crossovers and which other classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles they’d like to see in the future.

How Tales Of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Builds On Mutant Mayhem

Screen Rant: I watched this series, and I absolutely loved it. You guys don’t skip a beat on giving us what we got in Mutant Mayhem, and the animation is gorgeous. Chris and Alan, given your experience with other TMNT iterations, what lessons did you bring from those previous iterations into this show?

Chris Yost: I think for me, the Turtles are kind of this kind of eternal thing where you’ve got the personalities of these four brothers that are just so crystal clear and just so fun, and they work together so well.

Part of our job was just not mess it up, and the other thing that really helped us is we had this amazing cast that’s lived in the heads of these turtles for several years now and can bring all that magic from Mutant Mayhem into our show.

Micah, we’ve seen the Turtles fight against mutants and killer robots, which is right up Donnie’s alley. What excited you the most about getting to jump into Donnie for this kind of story?

Micah Abbey: I think he really takes advantage of his opportunities with Bishop. I don’t want to spoil too much, and I don’t know what’s out there, but Bishop’s got technical advancements that she uses to fight with the boys. I think that’s kind of like Donnie’s alley; that he has to learn to adapt and fight against [Bishop] in his way.

Shamon, we get to see Mikey on his own this season. What were you most excited to explore with Mikey, and what did you get to dive into with this series that you weren’t able to on the film?

Shamon Brown Jr.: I think that this time around, I got to really explore Mikey as an individual. I feel like we all do in this version. The first movie, we all played off each other’s energy, but we didn’t really get to dive into what made each character. I feel like as fans, we know, “Mikey’s the fun one, Leo’s a leader, et cetera, et cetera.”

But I feel like with this one, as an actor, I really got to dive in and make Mikey special. I feel like all the previous iterations had something to make their version special, so for this one, I just wanted to make him still be the fun and lovable Mikey that we all know over the years. But we also got to see Mikey have a little bit more maturity, so I wanted to definitely show that growth in the character.

Nicolas, we see Leo paired with April in this a lot. Can you talk to me about their dynamic in the show and how it’s evolved from the film?

Nicolas Cantu: Yeah, I think it’s pretty obvious in the film that Leo has a little bit of a crush on April. And I can say that in this show, it goes… Not many places, but they’re definitely good friends. I think it’s really fun to bounce off the character of April because Ayo killed it, and it’s just so much fun to be kicking butt alongside our famous news reporter friend.

Brady, Raph goes against his nature this season. How does that help him grow as a hero, and will we see him [hang back] instead of just jumping into the fray?

Brady Noon: Yeah, I think historically, Raphael has kind of been known as that hothead and run in with no real plan. I think now that he has some time away from his brothers, he’s really got to try and take a little bit of each Turtle and incorporate it.

You see him telling jokes to get out of situations now and talk his way through things, so it’s just a totally different side of Raph and a more vulnerable, personable side that you don’t really see rather than just, “Let’s go!” right into the battle every time.

Bringing In New Elements To Tales Of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Alanna, let’s talk about Bishop for a second. This is a new character that we haven’t seen in the movie. Can you talk about the process of finding Bishop’s voice?

Alanna Ubach: Oh, my gosh. I got a phone call, and I think it may have been Mama Imelda that they listened to. They thought, “Maybe Mama Imelda without the accent. What if we can grab her?” I’ve been a part of the Nickelodeon family for years and years since El Tigre, so I was called in and we basically found it there on the spot.

It took us about a good six or seven minutes for me to say the lines. “You want it like this or like that? How about this?” Subtle little things like, “Oh, yeah, that’s it. Keep her there.” “Okay note to self,” and then we just ran with it. It was so much fun.

In the film, you guys ended up recording together. But this time, you guys are really on your own individual journeys. Can you talk about finding your characters through those individual journeys and not having to rely on your fellow castmates?

Nicolas Cantu: I can speak to that. I think it was a very big part of the original movie that we were all together because, of course, it’s all the Turtle brothers. Recording together really gave us a sense of how to play off of each other, and I really got to know these guys.

In the show, when we’re exploring these individual storylines, it kind of helped to actually miss these guys and get into that head space where Leo was like, “I’m worried about my brothers. What’s going on? There’s giant robots chasing us. What are we going to do?” Recording alone gave me a real sense of loneliness that I put into the show.

Chris and Alan, what was it like to play with the Turtles’ perception of each other and themselves instead of just offering this external third-person perspective for the viewer?

Alan Wan: While they’re separated, they all went through an event together. They actually do a recap of that particular moment, and we put their personality into those moments and highlight how they see the world. Ultimately, when we bring it back to their solo mission, the reality is completely different.

Where The Current TMNT Universe Can Go Next

Question for all of you. What classic turtle villain or ally that we haven’t seen yet would you want to see on the show?

Brady Noon: I like, from the 2012 animated series, the little brain guys. The little alien brains. The Krang. I would like to see Krang back; the little brain guys. Those are the coolest.

Alanna Ubach: Jason Voorhees. Michael Myers!

Shamon Brown Jr.: I’d probably say Tiger Claw, the mutant Tiger.

Micah Abbey: I mean, we haven’t seen Shredder yet, so I would love to see Shredder.

The Ninja Turtles have crossed over with many different superheroes, whether it be Batman or Power Rangers. Who would you like to see the Turtles crossover with outside of the Turtles universe?

Brady Noon: Maybe a little Demon Slayer. A little Demon Slayer x Ninja Turtles.

Shamon Brown Jr.: I think it’d be dope to see Guardians of the Galaxy and the Turtles.

About Tales Of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

The Turtles, as teenagers, deal with their new life as heroes while also dealing with the pressures of going to high school in New York City.

Check back soon for our other Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles interviews:

• Micah Abbey, Nicolas Cantu, & Brady Noon
• Chris Yost & Alan Wan

Source: Screen Rant Plus

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