Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhemhas finally been released in theaters, and its debut at the worldwide box office brings in a comfortable total against its modest budget. The animated project grossed around $51 million from movie theaters across the planet, giving a solid advantage as the summer movie season approaches its conclusion. $43 million out of that total came from the United States and Canada alone — though the animated feature has only opened in 30% of planned international territories. After plenty of attempts to establish a live-action franchise with the intellectual property,Paramountis looking to make younger audiences fall in love with the classic characters through an animated installment, as the team tries to prevent evil mutants from taking over the planet.
InMutant Mayhem, the turtles are living their best lives, eating the best pizza in New York City, and trying to prevent crime from happening before it even begins. But even with all the teachings Splinter (Jackie Chan) has tried to give them over the course of their lives, nothing could’ve prepared them for the revolution that would be organized right outside their door. Superfly, the main antagonist of the story voiced byIce Cube, is tired of the way humans have treated mutants. His ideology leads him to believe that the only way to solve the problem is by making the mutants take control of society, setting the stage for the main battles of the film.
Another win for the animated feature is its impressive, and extensive, voice cast bringing the characters ofMutant Mayhemto life. Some of the most iconic characters from the franchise, Bebop and Rocksteady, were portrayed bySeth RogenandJohn Cena, respectively, whileThe Bear’sAyo Edebiribrought to life April O’Neil. On the other hand, the turtles themselves had four young actors behind them, bringing authenticity to theTeenageinTMNT. The journey of these versions of Raphael (Brady Noon), Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), Donatello (Micah Abbey), and Michaelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.) has just begun.
The Turtles at the Box Office
By comparison, the last time Paramount tried to bring theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesto the big screen saw different results at the box office. While the 2014 live-action version that featuredMegan Foxas April O’Neil scored $65.5 million at the domestic box office on its opening weekend, its sequel,Out of the Shadows, couldn’t obtain such strong results, only grossing $35.3 million on its debut. The sequel’s performance at the box office convinced the studio that perhaps it was time for a different approach. And with a moderate budget and not a lot of competition on the horizon,Mutant Mayhemhas a big chance for success.
You can check out Collider’s interview withJeff Rowe, the filmmaker behindMutant Mayhem, below:
