Two trips to the sewers and it was pretty much over for the Platinum Dunes reboot of the ’80s cult favorite heroes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

But out of the ooze of failure comes another reboot. Reports confirm that Paramount is working on a relaunch for the franchise, with a film that would be penned by Bad Words writer Andrew Dodge. More on the story below.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dodge will pen the script for a new film, which is looking for a director. They add that Michael Bay, Andrew Form, and Brad Fuller will produce the feature via their Platinum Dunes banner.

The recent reboot launched in 2014 with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and had a sequel released in 2016 with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. Neither were hits at the box office or with critics. But since Platinum Dunes was the production company behind A Quiet Place, it only makes sense that they would work on TMNT again, but with a different vision.

For those who may not be familiar with who or what the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are, the title pretty much sums it up. There are four members, named after their rat teacher Splinter’s favorite Italian Renaissance artists. Taught in the ways of the ninja, Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo fought against enemies like Shredder and Krang.

The reboot comes at a time when Paramount Pictures’ Jim Gianopulos has made it a priority to clean up the studio’s slate and refocus its franchises. We saw that happen earlier this year with The Cloverfield Paradox and now we are seeing that with TMNT. Insiders say they want to bring in some quality as they look to relaunch the franchise. One thing is for sure, we are seeing a lot more leadership change the way they are handling their franchises.

But given audiences’ cold reception to the previous reboot, one has to wonder if fans are even interested in seeing another Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film, let alone another reboot. It may have a cult following, but that is not nearly enough to sustain a franchise and give it the sequels it needs to last as long as Marvel Studios’ films.

So we will just have to wait and see if the team has what it takes to make TMNT interesting and relevant again. But no one can say the heroes in a half shell didn’t have any fun beating up Shredder and the gang. Let’s just hope they do that and a little bit more in this relaunch.

[Source: THR]