Relationship Between Casey Jones and Raphael in TMNT 2

Many fans have been wondering about the attitude of Casey Jones in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. As the film nears its eventual release, we have learned a lot more about the character from trailers, clips and interviews with the star Stephen Amell. In one of his most recent interviews, Amell spoke with IGN about the role and clarified something that shellheads everywhere have been concerned about. The relationship between Raphael and Casey Jones has always been a tumultuous one, so you can imagine that this is something that fans dearly want to see continue in the latest film. According to Amell, we have nothing to fear.
“He’s got a slightly adversarial relationship with Raphael. But that’s sort of Raphael’s personality and Casey’s personality. With Michelangelo, Donatello, and Leonardo, he’s much more amicable, but it’s a little bit confrontational with Raphael.”
When Casey and Raph first meet in both the original comics and the 90’s movies, their attitude toward one another is notably combative. Although they eventually become good friends, the two hotheads don’t necessarily like one another at first. Casey Jones and Raphael have always been a yin and yang for the franchise; they are two sides of the same coin. Originally, Casey was a character who hated criminals and literally wanted to beat them to death. This is where Raph came in and tried to convince him to change his ways, resulting in a fight that is of absolute importance to their characterization.
It’s nice to see that they haven’t veered too far off course for the origin story of Casey Jones – and according to Amell, this movie does attempt to build a new origin for the character:
“…it’s sort of an origin story for Casey Jones, and it’s certainly left in the position where if the franchise were to continue and be successful, that he could certainly come back.”
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows is shaping up to be a huge hit at the box office, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see Stephen Amell return as Casey in a third film of this franchise. That being said, I know that a lot of fans would also prefer to see a darker film (or potentially a television series) that focuses entirely on the character of Casey Jones.
This is a character with a fairly dark background that is worthy of exploring. I think there is potential for a movie that digs into the full story of this vigilante hero. With the success of films like Deadpool, I think it’s time for the studios to start thinking about taking a chance on a more adult version of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles universe.
Whatever happens, it’s nice to know that Jones will at least have the same kind of role in these new movies as he has had from the very beginning.