Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a 1990 American superhero comedy film directed by Steve Barron and written by Todd W. Langen and Bobby Herbeck. Based on the comic book characters created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, it is the first film adaptation of the characters. The story follows four anthropomorphic mutant turtles who must use their ninja training to save their master and adoptive father Splinter from his long-lost foe the Shredder and his Foot Clan of ninjas. They are aided by their new human allies April O'Neil (Judith Hoag) and Casey Jones (Elias Koteas).
The film adapts the early Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics, with several elements taken from the animated series airing at the time. Filming took place from July to September 1989 in North Carolina and New York City. Many major studios turned down distribution for the film, worrying that it could be a box office disappointment. New Line Cinema, at that time a small independent production company, acquired the rights halfway through production. The turtle costumes were developed by Jim Henson's Creature Shop, one of Jim Henson's last projects before his death shortly after the premiere.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was released in the United States on March 30, 1990, by New Line Cinema, and received mixed reviews from critics. It grossed $202 million on a budget of $14 million, and was the highest-grossing independent film up to that time and the ninth-highest-grossing film of 1990. It was followed by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993).
Plot
April O'Neil, a television reporter investigating a crime wave terrorizing New York City, is attacked by thieves, but is saved by an unseen group of vigilantes, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael. However, Raph loses a sai in the fight, which April recovers. The turtles return to their hidden lair in the sewer, where their adoptive father, a rat named Splinter, advises them to continue practicing the art of ninjutsu. Visiting the surface, Raph watches Critters, only to run into fellow vigilante Casey Jones, and is counseled by Splinter.
Charles Pennington, April's supervisor at Channel 3 News, struggles to control his delinquent son Danny, who has been recruited with other troubled teenagers to help the mysterious ninja Foot Clan in their wave of thefts. April suspects that the Foot are responsible, raising the ire of Police Chief Sterns, while Shredder, the leader of the Foot, sends his soldiers after April. Raph defeats them and brings the unconscious April to the turtles' lair, unknowingly followed by a Foot soldier. Splinter explains to April that he and the turtles were mutated into intelligent, anthropomorphic creatures by a mysterious chemical. After escorting April home and bonding over their love of pizza, the turtles return to find their lair ransacked and Splinter kidnapped, and return to April's apartment.
Danny is arrested, which Sterns uses to pressure Charles, who urges April to drop her investigation. Glimpsing the turtles hiding at April's apartment, Danny informs Shredder at the Foot's hideout, where Splinter is being held prisoner. Back at April's place, Raph argues with Leo over his leadership, and is ambushed on the rooftops by the Foot and beaten unconscious. Casey witnesses this and aids the turtles in fighting off the Foot and escape the burning building with April, who is fired by Charles in a phone message. Danny seeks counsel from the captive Splinter, and flees the Foot Clan. The turtles retreat to April's rundown family farm upstate, where she bonds with Casey as Raph recovers. Leo receives a vision of Splinter and assembles the other turtles to contact him through astral projection. Splinter delivers his final lesson, inspiring the turtles to return to the city.
The turtles find Danny hiding in their lair, and Casey follows him to the Foot's hideout. Splinter tells Danny that as an ordinary pet in Japan, he learned ninjutsu from watching his master, the ninja Hamato Yoshi. To escape conflict with his rival, Oroku Saki, over the love of a woman, Tang Shen, Yoshi fled with Shen to New York, where they were killed by a vengeful Saki. Splinter suggests Saki is linked to the Foot, while Shredder finds Danny and realizes that the turtles have returned, ordering Splinter to be killed. Casey and Danny free Splinter and defeat Shredder's lieutenant Tatsu, before convincing the remaining Foot members that they have been manipulated by Shredder.
The turtles repel the Foot from their lair and onto the streets, before confronting the spear-wielding Shredder on a rooftop. After a fierce battle, Shredder claims that Splinter is dead, overpowering an infuriated Leo and disarming the turtles. Before Shredder can kill Leo, Splinter appears and identifies him as Oroku Saki, who in turn recognizes Splinter as Yoshi's pet rat. Shredder charges Splinter, who snares his spear with Mikey's nunchaku, leaving Shredder dangling over the roof's edge. Shredder makes a final attempt to kill Splinter with a thrown tantō, but Splinter drops him into a garbage truck below. Casey then deliberately activates the truck's compactor, crushing Shredder.
The police arrive to arrest the Foot soldiers, and recover the stolen goods from their hideout. The Channel 3 news crew arrives as well to cover the story, and Danny is reunited with Charles, who gives April her job back with major benefits. April and Casey share a kiss, while the turtles celebrate their victory with Splinter.
Cast
Judith Hoag as April O'Neil: A young reporter for Channel 3 News. Elias Koteas as Casey Jones: A streetwise vigilante and former ice hockey player. Raymond Serra as Chief Sterns: The chief of the New York City Police Department. Michael Turney as Danny Pennington: A delinquent youth and prospect for the Foot Clan; he later insists that he be called Dan. James Saito / David McCharen as The Shredder: The leader of the Foot Clan, a network of runaways-turned-thieves. Jay Patterson as Charles Pennington: April's supervisor at Channel 3 News and Danny's father. Toshishiro Obata / Michael McConnohie as Tatsu: Shredder's second-in-command. Josh Pais as Raphael: The strong and angry member of the Turtles. David Greenaway performs the remote facial puppetry for Raphael, while Kenn Troumm doubles for in-suit fighting scenes. Michelan Sisti and Robbie Rist as Michelangelo: The least mature of the Turtles and fun-loving partier. Mak Wilson performs the remote facial puppetry for Michelangelo, while Choi-Nam Yip doubles for in-suit fighting scenes. Leif Tilden and Corey Feldman as Donatello: The smart one of the Turtles. David Rudman performs the remote facial puppetry for Donatello, while Ernie Reyes Jr. performs the in-suit stunts; Reggie Barnes doubles for Donatello in skateboarding scenes. David Forman and Brian Tochi as Leonardo: The leader and most mature of the Turtles and the closest to Splinter. Martin P. Robinson performs the remote facial puppetry for Leonardo, while Chi Wai Chiang and Mo Yuen double for in-suit fighting scenes.
Kevin Clash performs and voices Splinter, a rat and the Turtles' mentor; Clash was assisted in puppetry by Rickey Boyd and Robert Tygner. Other members of the Foot Clan include Sam Rockwell as the head thug, Skeet Ulrich and Scott Wolf as recruits, Leif Tilden as a messenger, and David Forman as a gang member who encounters Casey Jones at a warehouse. Michelan Sisti also appears as a Domino's Pizza delivery man and Josh Pais as a cab passenger who briefly encounters the masked Raphael. TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman has a small cameo as a garbage man.
Production Early concepts In the mid-1980s, creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird were pitched a concept of a live-action film adaptation by Roger Corman for his studio New World Pictures. The film was to have starred comedians Sam Kinison, Gallagher, Bobcat Goldthwait and Billy Crystal in green make-up as the turtles. Another early concept for the film was to combine live-action footage with animated turtles, in the vein of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, before it was decided to use costumes for the turtles.
Costume design The turtle costumes were created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop in London. Jim Henson said that the creatures were the most advanced that he had ever worked with. The creatures were first made out of fiberglass, and then remolded out of clay. They were produced as molds to cast the whole body in foam rubber latex. The work at the Creature Shop was completed within 18 weeks.
The costumes used state-of-the-art animatronics to make the face masks expressive. The masks included a set of internal animatronic mouths, eyes and eyebrows which were managed by a technician with the help of a computer. The computer could codify a set of expressions, such as anger or awe, which were later programmed into the keys of a joystick handed by the technician. Capture of movement was also used for the lips. The technician could wear a special helmet with cameras recording the lips when pronouncing a phrase, and transferring to the mechanical lips embedded in the masks.
Filming and post-production The film's budget was $13.5 million. Its script was mainly based on the early Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics, including the stories of the turtles' origins, rooftop battle, sojourn to the farmhouse, and battle with Shredder. Elements were taken from the 1980s animated series, such as the Turtles' colored bandanas and love of pizza, elements of Michelangelo's character, and April O'Neil as a television reporter instead of a lab assistant.
Much of the production took place in North Carolina, with a couple of location shoots in New York City during the summer of 1989 to capture famous landmark areas, such as the World Trade Center, Times Square, the Empire State Building, and the Hudson River. Filming in North Carolina took place at the North Carolina Film Studios, where New York rooftop sets were created. Production designer Roy Forge Smith and his art director, Gary Wissner, went to New York City four months prior to filming and took still photographs of rooftops and other various locations. While in NYC, Smith and Wissner were allowed to explore an abandoned Brooklyn subway line, as they could not gain access to a city sewer, but the structure of the subway had the same principle as a sewer. They also went to a water tunnel which had large pipes running through it. Eastman has a small role as a garbage man; according to him, he was supposed to have a larger role, but it ended up being a background cameo instead. Laird revealed in the 2014 Turtle Power documentary that he was also asked to play a small cameo role in the film, but he politely declined the offer as he was not comfortable with cameos in general.