Last month, reports confirmed that the newly merged Paramount–Skydance entity plans to “Sonic-fy” its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brand with a fresh live-action/CGI hybrid film.
This shift in strategy also pushed the previously announced, more mature adaptation of IDW's 5-issue Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin miniseries to the sidelines, at least for now.
But that leaves one big question hanging in the air: how does this new creative direction impact the already announced sequel to TMNT: Mutant Mayhem?
Recently, io9 caught up with director Jeff Rowe, who stated that as of now, he hasn't heard anything about impacts to his upcoming sequel and that he's confident that the two projects can coexist, citing examples of Tom Holland's MCU Spider-Man movies existing alongside the Spider-Verse films.
"No one’s called me and told me anything yet," Rowe told the site.
He continued, "It seems like we’re moving into a world where maybe multiple things can coexist. And, you know, there was a time when there were live-action Spider-Man movies being made at the same time as Spider-Verse. I love these characters and welcome as many takes on the franchise as people are willing to put out there."
However, it's worth noting that the upcoming second season of the tie-in, Paramount+ TV series Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, was confirmed to be its last, after there were reports that the series order had been upped to four due to delays in the sequel's release date.
Back in May, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem 2 was delayed from its original October 9, 2026, release date to September 17, 2027.
Still, Rowe noted that even though the movie didn’t light up the box office, the tie-in merchandise performed exceptionally well.
Stating that the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 – Lost in New Jersey short playing in front of The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants (hitting theaters December 19) came about because "the toy company needed more things out there because they sold very well."
The sequel is expected to pick up on the end credits stinger from the first film, which teased the arrival of a formidable foe, as Cynthia Utrom enlisting the notorious Shredder to combat the Turtles.
Rowe previously offered insights into the sequel's direction, particularly regarding Shredder's prominent role. "Shredder is just a great character. He’s an iconic, classic, loved character. He’s like the Joker. You know who he is, even if you’re not a fan of the source material," Rowe stated. "I think we definitely wanna do a villain-forward film."