Of all the live-action films in the series, 2016’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows is the first one that really felt as though it brought the original ’90s cartoon to life on the big screen. It was colorful, fun, and included a lot fan-favorite characters such as Krang, Bebop, Rocksteady, Casey Jones, and Baxter Stockman, as well as an awesome Turtle Van.
A Turtle Van did indeed make a brief appearance at the end of the 2014 film, but a much more tricked-out Turtle Van (disguised as a sanitation vehicle) was showcased in Out of the Shadows. Early on the film, you get to see it when the Foot Clan tried to free Shredder from a prison transport vehicle.
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Their upgraded vehicle incorporates the elements of each of the brothers. For the fun-loving Michelangelo, he can shoot manhole covers out its grill or swing oversized nunchucks from the comfort of a chair installed in the middle of the vanโwhich can also travel upward through a retractrable roof. When Raphael needs to vent some frustration, he can use a punching bag or the other excercise equipment. For the tech-savvy Donatello, he can observe what’s going on with TVs and monitors. As for the stoic Leonardo, I guess he can take a nap on the couch or loosen up with an arcade game or grab an Orange Crush from the soda machine.
Today, I have for you some amazing Turtle Van concept art that was created by profesional conceptual artist: Court Chu (Doctor Strange) and Joshua Min (American Horror Story).
“Here’s my concept art for the van in TMNT2,” Chu wrote. “I believe they gave me this van and already had ideas of stuff coming out of it, and just said to come up with more stuff.”
He took that suggestion and ran with it, coming up with several alternate gadget-filled versions of the Turtle Van. One of them he eqipped with laser guns, sticky foam gun, robot arm, vacuum arm, spring loaded ramming bar, cappucino machine, and elevated tires. Another he installed with front flamethrower, spike wheels, oil slick nozzle, nitro boosters, smoke screen, top ejection platform, net gun, and magnet arm. A third included spinning blades, amphibious mode, fishing pole holder, side chair, siren alarm/boombox, grappling hook gun, and distress balloon.
You can check out all three, as well as a trio of alternate paint jobs for the Turtle Van, by clicking on our “Start Slideshow” feature. The slideshow also includes a couple of Min’s interior and exterior designs for the Turtle Van, as well as key-frame art of the Foot Clan attacking the transport vehicle.
Raphael, Leonardo, Donatello, and Michelangelo are back to battle bigger, badder villains, alongside April O’Neil and a newcomer: the hockey-masked vigilante Casey Jones. After supervillain Shredder escapes custody, he joins forces with two dimwitted henchmen, Bebop and Rocksteady, to unleash a diabolical plan to take over the world. As the Turtles prepare to take on Shredder and his new crew, they find themselves facing an even greater threat with similar intentions: the notorious Krang.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows was directed by Dave Green. The cast featured Megan Fox, Will Arnett, Laura Linney, Stephen Amell, Tyler Perry, Alan Ritchson, Noel Fisher, Pete Ploszek, Jeremy Howard, Brad Garrett, Brian Tee, Sheamus, and Gary Anthony Williams.
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