Michael Bay continues to play a dual role as producer and unofficial social media cheerleader for the Teenage Mutant Turtles sequel, which recently and unexpectedly added Laura Linney to its cast. He was back this weekend with a new look at the film, the first image of Stephen Amell as Casey Jones.
The man better known for running round small screens as DC Comics hero Arrow is playing a different type of vigilante in the new Turtles outing. The hockey mask-wearing, sports gear-wielding wise cracker has long been an ally of the central foursome and an occasional love interest for April O’Neil. He didn’t show up in the first film, but that might have been because it was overstuffed with plot and characters getting the origin story out of the way. Amell here certainly looks the part, minus perhaps Jones’s trademark long hair (he has a buzz cut on Arrow and the show’s attempts to portray him in flashbacks with a wig are not usually all that convincing, which might explain the character’s short cropped style here.)
Although the plot is still mostly unknown, the sequel will see the turtles – performance-captured and voiced by Alan Ritchson, Noel Fisher, Pete Ploszek and Jeremy Howard – tackling threats new and old in New York City. Megan Fox and Will Arnett are back as April O’Neil and scuzzy cameraman Vernon Fenwick respectively, with Danny Woodburn once more providing the performance work for mutant rat mentor Splinter. Tyler Perry is playing Baxter Stockman, while Brian Tee was recently announced as the new Shredder.
Earth To Echo’s David Green has taken over directorial duties this time, but writers Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec are back to provide the script for the movie, which is scheduled to arrive here on June 3, 2016.