‘Ninja Turtles’ Actor Says Working on Movies Made Him Hate Life
Alan Ritchson, the actor who provided the motion capture and voice for Raphael in the recent 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' movies, is now calling those films the worst experiences of his career.
Speaking to Collider Live, Ritchson spoke very candidly about his feelings on the live-action Ninja Turtle moves starring Megan Fox, calling it the worst experience of his career and something that made him hate his life. Richtson admitted to not originally being interested in the project, feeling his work wouldn't be recognized due to the motion capture and CGI. However, Ritchson was talked into doing it by the producers, citing the rise in Andy Serkis' career after playing Gollum in the 'Lord of the Rings' movies, and assuring him that he and the other actors playing the Turtles would be an equal part of the promotional tour and interviews, which they ultimately weren't. Ritchson also accuses the filmmakers of perpetuating a false story to media outlets that the Turtle actors were refusing to do interviews.
Ritchson detailed several instances where the Turtles actors were treated as inferior to the rest of the cast and crew, and stated that as an apology for the bad experiences on the first film, he was offered back-end points on the sequel, but never received them. Ritchson and the other Turtle performers were contracted for three films, but were told a 3rd film would not be made after the disappointing theatrical run of the sequel.