Interview - Peter Laird

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

KW: How will the new series, which starts in February, be different from the old series?
Peter: The biggest difference is that the new series is a lot closer to the original comic. There'll be a lot more emphasis on action. There'll be a lot more chasing, jumping, bobbing and flipping. There may even be a few more fight scenes. We're also gonna weave some extreme action sports into the mix. The new Turtles look much more athletic and are a lot cooler. The Turtles also have a new vehicle called the Battle Shell that's been adapted from an armored car. One of the Turtles is also going to ride a motorcycle in the show.

KW: Any plans for another full-length movie about the TMNT?
Peter: That's something we've been talking about. We're working to do a two-part television movie that's going to be a combination of live-action and CGI. That's going to be awesome, so I'm pretty psyched. My daughter desperately wants to see Orlando Bloom cast in the role of Casey Jones, who's one of the Turtle's pals. I don't know if that'll ever happen but she's been bugging me about it.

KW: What sort of advice do you have for kids wanting to start their own comic, like you did?
Peter: Draw, draw, draw - and don't stop. You can tell the kids who aren't terribly serious about drawing comics. They learn to draw a few things and then they don't want to learn to draw anything else. That's not going to cut it in comics. You have to be able to draw anything. You can't give up. It's a very competitive business. If you get rejected a bunch of times, like we did, you gotta keep going and not let it get you down.

KW: When you were a kid, what did you like most in school and what did you like the least?
Peter: I was a bit of a geek so I actually enjoyed school, for the most part. PE was my worst class. I never really got into that too much. I enjoyed exercising but the way they taught it back then was just horrible. My favorite classes were Science and English. I actually won an award in Science class.

KW: Was that award for taking turtles and dipping them into some sort of toxic substance?
Peter: No, I'm afraid not. If only I'd thought of that...

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and their gooey, green adventures return to television on February 8, 2003 on Fox Box.

To go back to the beginning of this interview, click here.

Related Stories: