Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 News: First Look at Stephen Amell as Casey Jones

We imagine you probably have rather strong feelings about the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie (I didn't particularly love it, myself), but the sequel is on the way.

The Latest News

This is pretty cool. Stephen Amell is playing Casey Jones in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2, but you knew that already. But what we didn't expect was to actually see Stephen Amell as Casey Jones so soon. 

But Michael Bay has fixed that for you. He's wearing the traditional goalie mask, and brandishing a hockey stick. But part of Casey Jones appeal is his use of all kinds of sporting goods to get the job done. I'd rather have seen him with a baseball bat, here. But really, that's a ridiculous complaint, isn't it?

Look, as long as Casey Jones fights Raphael in Central Park over who gets to beat up a mugger, I'll be happy.

The Cast

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2will have a new Shredder in the house. Brian Tee (The Wolverine) will play what we're hoping is a much more faithful version of the Turtles' greatest enemy.

In addition to the original cast returning, Arrow's Stephen Amell will play sports-enthusiast/vigilante Casey Jones. This is nearly perfect casting. 

It was revealed at CinemaCon that mutant antagonists Bebop and Rockstead are definitely in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2. This makes sense, as there was some movement to have them in the first film, but it never happened. So that's cool. 

It confirms earlier reports from producers Brad Fuller and Andrew Form, who dropped the news over on The Omelette (thanks to Collider for getting us this), "We can say that Bebop and Rocksteady are in the film."

The other bit of good news is that another fan favorite from the Turtles' golden age is also in this movie, making his live-action debut: that would be Baxter Stockman. Stockman was credited in the 2014 film, but we're not really sure if that was ever intended to stick. Stockman was played by K. Todd Freeman.

Anyway, this is good news, as is the fact that they've cast an African-American actor as Stockman for the second time. Stockman, a "mad scientist" type who created a horde of robotic mousers that annoyed the Turtles (and especially Splinter) was originally conceived as a black man before having his race switched for his cartoon debut (later animated series corrected this).

The bad news?

Tyler Perry is playing Baxter Stockman, which should give you an idea of the tone that they're aiming for with his characterization and perhaps the sequel in geneal. Thanks to Variety for the news.

Perhaps in a bid to offset Tyler Perry, Laura Linney (Hyde Park on the Hudson, Mr. Holmes) has joined the cast of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 in a mystery role. That's some more serious acting firepower than we've come to expect from a TMNT movie.  

Supermodel Allesandra Ambrosio will have a part in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2. She'll be playing a love interest for Will Arnett's Vernon Fenwick, who has apparently gotten over April O'Neil. That's all we've got right now. (via THR)

But since Ambrosio was spotted with Arnett filming at a basketball game, it seems that some members of the LA Clippers squad will make cameo appearances in the film. In a chat with Grantland, the Clippers' JJ Reddick implies that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 may boast the title "Half Shell" but that might just be a working title.

The Rest

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 will begin shooting in the TMNT hometown of New York City (appropriately enough) and Buffalo, NY in April, in order to meet its June 3rd, 2016 release date.

"New York City knows how to host blockbuster films," said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (via the NY Daily News). “We welcome Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 to New York City, and look forward to the many jobs this will bring to our local economy."

Dave Green is directing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2. if you're of a certain age or have kids of a certain age, you might just enjoy Green's Earth to Echo. The pacing and general tone of Earth to Echo wouldn't be inconsistent with what you might want from a fun, kid-friendly TMNT movie.

Josh Applebaum and Paul Nemec are returning as writers. Jonathan Liebesman directed the first film. Green may be a rising star, as he's also slated to direct Lore, which will star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 producer Michael Bay revealed some photos from the movie on Twitter, taking a page out Suicide Squad movie director David Ayer's playbook: 

Just some stuff I found… http://t.co/yydcIebaIC pic.twitter.com/sYNXmPpNJL

— Michael Bay (@michaelbay) April 25, 2015

So, other than that Polaris, which I'm not really sure whether that actually fits into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 or not, the other two are the Turtles' famous Battle Wagon. In keeping with the aesthetic of these movies, it's a little bigger and tougher than previous incarnations. Tartaruga, by the way, is Italian for "turtle."

You can see MUCH bigger versions of those images right here.

More on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 as we get it.