BURBANK, Calif.–July 19, 2018—Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fans emerged at Comic-Con International: San Diego 2018 for Nickelodeon’s Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles panel where new voice cast–Omar Miller as Raph, Ben Schwartz as Leo, Josh Brener as Donnie, Brandon Mychal Smith as Mikey, Kat Graham as April O’Neil, and Eric Bauza as Splinter–along with the co-executive producers Andy Suriano and Ant Ward, and legendary voice director Rob Paulsen shared what to expect in the latest incarnation of Turtles and reinvention of the world famous franchise. Moderated by Keely Flaherty (BuzzFeed), the panel included behind-the-scenes reveals and never-before-seen clips from the upcoming series.
Raph, Leo, Donnie and Mikey emerge from the sewers and tap into undiscovered ninja powers in Nickelodeon’s reimagined, 2D-animated series Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, debuting Monday, Sept. 17. The action-comedy series follows the band of brothers as they discover new powers and encounter a mystical world they never knew existed beneath the streets of New York City. In the months following, the series will premiere globally across Nickelodeon’s channels and branded blocks in 170+ countries and territories.
Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles follows the Turtles on all-new adventures as they master new powers, encounter absurd mutants and battle bizarre villains, each with their own motivations. Ranging from mystics, mutants and madmen, new creatures and villains emerge to take on Raph, Leo, Donnie and Mikey in battles across New York City. From the tallest skyscraper to the dankest sewer drain, the brothers learn to work together and navigate the perils of New York City and the hidden realms below in order to fulfill their destiny to become a team of heroes.
The line-up of guest stars voicing these new mutants and bizarre villains includes: Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) as Big Mama, a gigantic spider mutant; John Michael Higgins (Pitch Perfect) as Warren Stone, a former news anchor turned mutant earthworm; Tom Kenny (SpongeBob SquarePants) as Albearto, a singing, birthday-loving rampaging robot; Sam Richardson and Tim Simons (Veep) as Muninn and Huginn, gargoyles who are never far from their master, Baron Draxum; John Rotten Lydon (Public Image Ltd ‘PiL’ and Sex Pistols) as Meat Sweats, a power-hungry mutant pig; Rhys Darby (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) as Hypno-Potamus, a mutant magician/hippo; and Jorge Gutierrez (El Tigre) as Ghostbear, a human pro-wrestler champion with a taste for cheating.
In addition, Rob Paulsen (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and Maurice LaMarche (Animaniacs) reunite behind the mic as Foot Lieutenant, the de-facto leader of the Foot Clan, and Foot Brute, the Foot Lieutenant’s right hand man.
The series stars the voice talent of Omar Miller (Ballers) as Raph, a jagged-shelled snapping turtle; Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation) as Leo, a red-eared slider turtle; Josh Brener (Silicon Valley) as Donnie, a soft-shell turtle; Brandon Mychal Smith (You’re The Worst) as Mikey, a box turtle; Kat Graham (The Vampire Diaries) as April O’Neil, a street savvy native New Yorker; Eric Bauza (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) as Splinter, father figure and sensei to the Turtles; and WWE Superstar John Cena as the villainous, Baron Draxum.
In the half-hour launch episode, “Mystic Mayhem,” the Turtles discover for the first time that they’re not the weirdest things in New York.
Fans can watch a sneak peek of “Mystic Mayhem” on Friday, July 20, at 9:30 p.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon. Additional episodes will be available on the Nick App, Nick.com, and Nick On Demand.
The new 26-episode series is co-executive produced by Andy Suriano (character designer, Samurai Jack) and Ant Ward (supervising producer, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) at Nickelodeon in Burbank. Veteran animation industry voice actor Rob Paulsen is voice directing the series.
Viewers can visit the Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles page on Nick.com and Facebook for more information and follow @TMNT everywhere else for Turtle Power updates.
