Turtle Power! TMNT hits 25, announces new movie

Posted Thursday, April 23, 2009 at 3:16 PM Central

by John Couture

You know you're getting old when you wake up one day (today) and learn that the those lovable Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are no longer teenagers. Nope, today makes the 25th anniversary of the debut of the original comic book and serves as my daily reminder that my best days may, in fact, be behind me.

Over on comic co-creator Peter Laird's blog, he broke the news with an official press release from The Mirage Group.

The Mirage Group has given the green light for development of a live-action major motion picture focusing on the origins of the iconic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, targeted for release in 2011.

Announcement of the latest (fifth) big screen version of the crime-fighting “heroes in a half-shell” comes on the day the Turtles kick off their 25th anniversary national “Shell-ebration” in New York City with multiple events that include the honor of lighting the Empire State Building in ‘turtle green’ and a unique outdoor presentation of their beloved first “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” film at the Tribeca Film Festival “Drive-In”.

The part that really excites me about this announcement is the insistence that the film will focus on the origins of the turtles. It sounds like it's getting the Batman Begins treatment that hopefully will serve as a proper reboot to the series.

Another reason to get excited is the involvement of producer Scott Mednick. He was involved in the unique visual styles seen in 300 and the upcoming Where the Wild Things Are. One thing is certain, Mednick will get the look of the turtles right which, let's face it, is one of the major flaws of the first four films in the series.

What do you think of this new project? Are you excited for more cowabungas? Or should the past remain in the part?

Meanwhile, Season 7 of the animated TV series is set to debut on DVD on May 12.