There are plenty of reasons to be excited about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2, and we’ve already gone over quite a few of them. Even if you didn’t like the first movie, chances are that you’ll find something to enjoy about the sequel. Don’t believe me? Well, normally I wouldn’t tell you to take Shredder’s word for it, but in this case that’s actually not a bad idea!
Brian Tee, the newest actor to don the helm of this iconic nemesis, had some interesting things to say about his latest role. In addition to talking about how much he loves the TMNT franchise, he also explained that his interpretation of the Shredhead is going to be a bit different from anything we’ve seen before.
“My Shredder is definitely a little different. I think he’s much more grounded in reality, in a sense. In talking to the producers, writers and director, they really wanted to put a face to Shredder, which they never had before. Shredder has always been kind of behind the mask. They want Shredder to be a grounded human being that’s a bad (expletive). Hopefully that will shine through.”
Well, if on set photography is any indication, that would appear to be an accurate statement. After all, the pictures we have seen of Brian Tee in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 reveal that his armor is a lot more realistic. In the 2014 reboot of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Master Shredder had all kinds of blades and technology to work with; from what we’ve seen in photos from the set of TMNT 2, he doesn’t appear to be wearing much of anything sharp or pointy.
As a matter of fact, Shredder looks a lot more like a martial artist in the sequel than he did in the original reboot. Whether or not this is a good thing remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure: Brian Tee was an excellent choice for the role. When asked about his experiences with the character, he shared an interesting story from his youth.
“When you’re Shredder for Halloween as a kid, and now you get to play him, it’s like a childhood dream come to life. I must have been 8. It was around when the comic books first came out, I believe, in ’84. I was a big reader. I loved these turtles that were somehow mutants and teenagers and they were ninjas. How cool is that?”
Go figure, he’s already played Shredder before! Okay, so maybe that was just a Halloween costume, but it’s still pretty cool to hear that Tee has had experience with the character before and he is familiar with the origins of the TMNT. I think we can all agree that if there’s anything these movies could use, it’s a little more respect for the source material. With Brian Tee in charge of the Shredhead, we should all feel a little bit more comfortable with the sequel.
What do you think? Do you think Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 will be more grounded in reality? Will it be more true to the source material? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! TMNT 2 is set for release on June 3rd, 2016 in the United States.
