10 Surprising Facts Behind The Making Of The 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Movie

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have grown into one of the most iconic comic book franchises of all time. While there are many different adaptations of these heroes, for many fans, nothing has ever topped the 1990 live-action movie that brought Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo to the big screen for the first time.

Some aspects of the film might seem quite dated to modern fans, but it remains a beloved adventure with these characters that blew the minds of young fans when it was released. A lot went on behind the scenes to create this adventure that still has so many fans three decades later.

10 Original Live-Action / Animated Approach

The first ideas of how to transform the Ninja Turtles comic book into a movie began bubbling in the 1980s. There was a lot of interest in capitalizing on the success of the comics, but no one could seem to figure out how to portray the heroes in live-action.

Following the success of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, there was the inspiration to take a similar approach to the Ninja Turtles. They would be animated characters interacting with a live-action world. The idea was quickly dropped in favor of turtle costumes.

9 Jim Henson’s Work On The Turtles

Creating the suits for the turtles was ground-breaking kind of work and it was clear there was only one man capable of pulling it off. Jim Henson, the visionary creator of the Muppets was brought in to create the turtle costumes complete with animatronic heads.

Henson and his team did brilliant work which Henson called some of the most elaborate he’s ever done. However, the man himself was said to have been disappointed with the amount of violence in the final film. Sadly, he died shortly after the film premiered.

8 Cameos From The Physical Actors

While the turtle costumes were the creation of Jim Henson and his team, it also took some dedicated actors to bring them to life. The actors who performed the physical role of the turtles had to endure hours in the hot, uncomfortable costumes. As a small reward, they were given small cameos outside of the costumes.

Josh Pais, who plays Raphael, plays a taxicab passenger. Michelan Sisti, who plays Michaelangelo, plays the pizza delivery man. Leif Tilden, who plays Donatello, and David Forman, who plays Leonardo, play Foot clan members.

7 Judith Hoag As April

Though not a member of the heroic foursome, April O’Neill is a key character in the story of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. She is a human news reporter who discovers the turtles and becomes their ally in the fight against evil.

Judith Hoag was cast in the role after actors like Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock were considered. Hoag reportedly was unhappy with the production and often complained about the film and her costume. As a result, she was not asked to return for the sequels.

6 Josh Pais As Raphael

While the rest of the Ninja Turtles are portrayed by two actors, one physical performer, and one voice performer, Josh Pais was the only one who had the opportunity to play both the physical role and provide the voice.

Apparently, it was Pais’ idea to give Raphael a Brooklyn accent. The physical aspect of the role was not as easy. Pais suffers from claustrophobia and found the costume to be not ideal for his condition.

5 Stars Considered To Play Casey Jones

Another key member of the Ninja Turtles’ team is another human hero, Casey Jones. A huge fan-favorite, Casey is a hockey-loving vigilante who wears a goalie mask and fights off the Foot Clan with his trusty hockey stick.

He is played in the film by Elias Koteas, an accomplished character actor who has appeared in such things as Shutter Island and Zodiac. Other actors considered for the part include some up-and-coming stars of the time such as Christian Slater, Johnny Depp, and Keanu Reeves.

4 Help From Robin Williams

Despite the idea of mutant turtles becoming ninjas, these characters had become very popular, and not just with children. One notable fan of the franchise was Hollywood star and legendary comedian Robin Williams, who had a slight involvement with the film.

As she was preparing for the role of April, Judith Hoag was making Cadillac Man with Williams. When he found out, he provided Hoag with a ton of information about the character to help her prepare.

3 Ground-Breaking Box Office Success

Nowadays, comic book films are the biggest genre in Hollywood, and it seems like every property is getting its own movie. However, the genre was not as popular in 1990 which made Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles a big risk.

After every major studio turned them down, it was decided that the film would be made as an independent film. It managed to defy expectations and became the highest-grossing independent film of all time until it was unseated nearly a decade later by The Blair Witch Project.

2 Roger Corman’s Pitch

While plenty of studios turned down the opportunity to make the film, one Hollywood legend who was eager to bring the turtles to life with Roger Corman. Known for his low-budget horror films, including the 1994 version of Fantastic Four, Corman pitched several ideas to the franchise creators about how to pull the movie off.

One of his craziest ideas was bringing together popular comedians of the day, Gallagher, Sam Kinison, Bobcat Goldthwait, and Billy Crystal. His idea was to have them wear shells on their backs and paint them green.

1 A Darker Cut

Despite several fight sequences and an intense villain in the form of Shredder, the movie is still a family-friendly adventure that is suitable for all ages. However, that might not have been the original intention.

According to actor Josh Pais, director Steve Barron was fired near the end of production as the producers were concerned the film was too dark. It is unknown what changes Barron’s versions may have included to make it darker. Could a “Barron Cut” be released sometime in the future?

About The Author

Colin McCormick
(2027 Articles Published)

Colin McCormick is a Senior Writer with Screen Rant and has been a proud member of the team since 2019. In addition to his work as Screen Rant, Colin is also a writer of News, Feature and Review pieces at Game Rant. Colin has had a long passion and obsession with movies going back to the first time he saw The Lion King in theaters. Along with movies, Colin stays up-to-date on the latest must-see TV shows. While he loves to find interesting projects in any kind of genre, he has a special movie of crime stories that are infused with a little dark humor much like the work of his favorite author, Elmore Leonard.

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