A Transformer Made a Cameo in 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2' — Sort Of
(Photo: Paramount Pictures)
For a quartet of sewer-dwelling reptiles, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have kept some pretty impressive company over their three-decade existence. In their comic book incarnation, for example, Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael have rubbed shoulders and/or thrown punches with everyone from Archie and Batman to Sonic the Hedgehog and the Ghostbusters. And then there was that time where TV viewers — at least those within the 5-15 demographic — saw the brothers get transported to outer space where they crossed paths with the Power Rangers.
To date, those kinds of synergistic (or, if you prefer, opportunistic) meet-ups haven’t happened in any of the Turtles’ feature films. But their latest big-screen outing, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, which topped the box office this weekend, does float at least the possibility of a lucrative crossover. While partying hearty in the midst of a New York costume parade — a clear violation of Master Splinter’s strict ninja code that dictates his disciples remain hidden in the sewers — Michelangelo bumps into Transformers franchise fan favorite, Bumblebee. Okay, so it’s not the actual Bumblebee, just a cosplayer dressed up as the sporty yellow robot in disguise. The nerd-who-would-be-Bumblebee gives Michelangelo’s “costume” a big thumbs up before vanishing back into the crowd, making the teenage turtle’s heart and ego grow at least three sizes.
(Photo: Paramount Pictures)
In what universe could a Ninja Turtle and a (fake) Transformer meet, you ask? The Paramount Cinematic Universe, of course! The studio has been releasing Transformers movies to great commercial success — though far from great critical acclaim — since Michael Bay’s 2007 franchise-launcher. A fifth movie, Transformers: The Last Knight, is on the way in 2017 and will provide the gateway to a galaxy of further sequels and spin-offs modeled after the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Paramount has similar plans for other toy lines owned by Transformers manufacturer Hasbro, creating a shared universe inhabited by the likes of G.I. Joe, the Micronauts and ROM the Space Knight.
While Hasbro doesn’t own either toy or screen rights to the Turtles, Bay’s production company, Platinum Dunes, has overseen both Shadows and its 2014 predecessor. (Also linking the two franchises is the presence of Megan Fox, who starred in the first two Transformers features and reprises her role as April O'Neal in Shadows.) Suffice it to say, if the pizza-chomping bros were to turn up in a Transformers movie, it would only benefit both Paramount and Bay’s bottom line and function as the studio’s answer to Spider-Man mingling with Tony Stark in Captain America: Civil War.
But don’t start picturing Leonardo and Optimus Prime trading leadership advice just yet. Out of the Shadows producer Brad Fuller has indicated that the Bumblebee cameo is simply all in good fun. Speaking with Screenrant recently, Fuller remarked, “At this point, I can’t see any kind of crossover. There’s never been talk of that. We’re just trying to create an environment where people are eager to see more Turtles.” The producer also insisted that there’s more than enough material left to mine in the Turtles’ own universe before they’re sent into another. “I don’t know why we would start doing a crossover until it felt like the story lines had been played out in the Turtle world.” For now at least, it looks like the only place that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the Transformers will exist side-by-side is in your toy chest.
Watch a behind-the-scenes look at the mo-cap effects that turned actors into Turtles:
