You wouldn’t think that The Shredder would be in the business of defending April O’Neil, but that’s just what happened in a recent interview with Parade Magazine. William Fichtner, set to play the iconic villain in the new Jonathan Liebesman film due out in 2014, came to the defense of both Megan Fox and Michael Bay when asked about the controversy surrounding the film. To be fair, he may not have been very invested in the question, but the amount of hyperbole on display here is fairly interesting.
“I think the stamp, from a producer standpoint, that Michael Bay brings and the feel and the look that he wants you to get is going to be unlike any Turtles you’ve ever seen. This is live action. These turtles are out there. They’re incredible looking. It truly is. It’s unlike any Turtles you’ve seen and it’s unlike any Shredder you’ve seen. I think Megan [Fox] is the right woman in the right role at the right time playing April.”
Needless to say, I’m sure there are a lot of TMNT fans out there who would disagree with Fitchner on these points. Cast members have come to the defense of this latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film in the past, but few have come out and actually said such positive things about either Michael Bay or April O’Neil. Regardless of how some fans might feel about these casting decisions, we try to take a neutral approach to these projects and hope for the best. Even so, these comments seem a bit out there and display a lack of desire to stick to the origins of the Ninja Turtles.
When one of the main characters in the film comes out and says this is going to be “unlike any Turtles you’ve ever seen,” it doesn’t exactly inspire excitement for all of us Shellheads. We don’t want to hear that you’ve been changing our favorite characters and it is honestly disconcerting to see the suggestion that you have. Whether or not Fichtner may be right about Megan Fox remains to be seen, but that is a pretty shining endorsement to get from the villain of the film.
Okay, so none of this means that they have changed too much about our beloved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be worried. After all, Fichtner’s Shredder is already a representation of a huge change being made to the story; no longer is the character Asian, his name has been changed to Eric Sachs, and he’s apparently a European American. When the actor portraying one of the biggest confirmed changes to the storyline starts saying that this movie is “unlike any Turtles you’ve seen,” that has got to be cause for concern. We’ll still take the wait and see approach, but that doesn’t mean that we – along with many other TMNT fans – aren’t still on edge about this project.
19 comments
Yeah, I have to agree. From the moment that first leaked script went out, I was on edge, especially with Michael Bays name attached. I actually like Johnathan Liebesman, I enjoyed Battle: Los Angeles, but I have felt researched very early on. Honestly I remember when the first announcements came out that they would reboot the turtle franchise and bring it closer to the comics, and find myself wondering just what happened to that plan.
I was willing to give this movie a true shot until…
A), They made Oroku Saki into Eric Sachs
and B), The Foot are no longer ninjas, but instead a division of the military.
Congratulations Michael Bay, you have single-handedly disgraced a franchise.
MILITARY MILITARY MILITARY!!! This is EXACTLY why fans didn’t want Michael Bay involved: he has such a hard-on for making the military the star of every movie he makes. These are the TURTLES. They’re NINJA. Kids love manga and Japanese things; it’s part of the whole appeal of the property in the first place.
Every time I see something that gives me confidence about this film (such as the leaked Shredder costume), I see something that takes it away (turtle lips and WHITE Shredder).
I get less and less excited about this film with every article i read!! 🙁
I’m 30 and literally grew up with the turtles. There’s so many different versions of the story. While I had/have some of the same issues that everyone else is bringing up, I look forward to a different version of the Turtles. I’d rather something different than something so familiar at it’s just fan service. The Next mutation was terrible but we got over that.
Same here. I grew up with TMNT as well. But change is good, and my tastes aren’t what they were 25 years ago. I don’t know why some people insist on sticking to old formats.
I grew up a Turtle fan and I am STILL excited for this film. To be frank, I don’t think I would be as excited knowing it was the same original story that’s been told a hundred times now. I’m not thrilled with Megan Fox, but as far as everything else goes. Im pretty excited and really like “NOT” knowing what to expect.
Exactly. It’s a different vision. It may suck or it may be such a fresh story that we like this version.
Huh? What’s wrong with Megan Fox? She’s flippin hot!
I just think they should of stayed away from her. She’s not the worst actress, but I feel like adding her in says “Transformers” more then it already does. lol
Who would you have liked to have seen play April?
I would like to have seen someone like Amy Adams, but the more I read about Ms. Fox’s interests in comics, the more i feel like she will be just fine. hmm….
Her attractiveness is debatable. Beyond that her acting abilities are much more cut and dry. She’s a lighting rod that is going to turn off many people. I’m hoping that she does well, but she doesn’t have a good resume so far.
Hmmm…I would argue that Megan Fox’s attractiveness is only debatable if you’re blind OR into some weird niche (ie. obese wheelchair amputees). And wasn’t Judith Hoag rather cut and dry in the 1990 movie? I thought she pulled it off rather well. In any case, they’re probably gunning for a slightly younger generation for this movie, hence Fox. They know that those of us who grew up with TMNT will go see it regardless.
Agreed with Russ, I think this new take on the old cartoon is going to kick scroto. I was watching some movie, where Megan Fox was some mom’s workout friend or something, and after seeing that performance, I thought she’d be the best april, and then I found out a couple days after, my moistest dreams had come true. As for Micheal Bay, he knows how to get special effects done, and he’s brilliant at putting action on screen. Kevin Eastman, which in my opinion was the brilliance behind the Turtles, while Peter Laird ran it into the ground, was supervising the script and loved it which I think shows awesome potential. But yeah I’m getting hella anxious to see this movie, just over half a year to go.
michael bay is a bad director its not her fault she wasnt that good in transformers all fox needs is a director who can get a good performance out of her,eg james mangold, peter jackson, quentin tarintino among others,i dont know if j.l is the man for the job either
i am sick of people who think they can cast a film based off of comic books like they are the only ones who can bloody well cast the film. this is the same crap that happen what ben afalleck was cast as batman in the new superman/batman film, just give the actors a chance and if after seeing the film then if you do not like it then voice your opinion until then in the immortal words of mike ditka “STOP IT”. though i do not think you will and it is your right not to “STOP IT”, but i would like to see you go and produce/direct/write a film and cast it with whom you feel would be good for each role and see how the hell you feel when someone trashes your choices.
I think Affleck will make a fine Batman, and no one is questioning Fitchner’s acting. It’s the fact that they’ve taken away the Asian element from the Foot that pisses people off. Sure, it’s a bit corny that there are ninjas running around in modern America, but that’s half of the fun! Japanese culture is a definitive part of the TMNT property, and as kids it was the part that was the most interesting.
Megan Fox is too closely tied with Bay/Transformers to be an effective April. It’s too hard to not see her casting as a big middle finger to the fans from Bay, since they pooped on his turtles-as-aliens thing.
IF THEY CHANGE THEM I WILL GO ALL FANGIRL AND MAKE THEM MISERABLE.(maniacal laughter) no change turtles hollywood
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