Before landing Reacher, Alan Ritchson tried to quit the live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise after having a miserable experience making them. After years of stealing scenes in movies and shows like тιтans, Ritchson’s casting as Reacher proved to be his big breakthrough.

In addition to the upcoming Reacher season 4 (which adapts the 13th novel Gone Tomorrow) and appearing in the spinoff Neagley, Ritchson has multiple movies like Runner and Man with the Bag on the horizon. He’s busier than ever, basically, and all the hard work he put into his early career is paying off.

Ritchson’s biggest franchise role before Reacher was in the Michael Bay-produced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies, where he provided the mo-cap and voice for resident tough guy Raphael. Ritchson revealed to Collider in 2019 that he took the role as he felt it could expand his career, only for the film to be a nightmare experience.

Alan Ritchson Hated Making The Teenage Mutant Turtles Movies

The Ninja Turtles experience made Ritchson “hate life so much”

Ritchson used his Collider interview to really vent his feelings on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles duology, and how poorly he and his fellow Turtle actors were treated. Ritchson was initially reluctant to accept the gig, since the pay was bad and despite the work it would involve, he wouldn’t be seen onscreen.

I’m going to waste years of my life, the best years of my career, on something that nobody’s going to even know I’m a part of.

Producers managed to smooth-talk Ritchson into accepting a three-picture deal, claiming he and his co-stars would be part of the publicity machine and attend premieres. They also pointed to the success of Andy Serkis in the Lord of the Rings movies as proof that mo-cap performers could go on to major careers.

Finally, he made Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as he wanted to do something his young son could see. Ultimately, making the 2014 blockbuster was a chore for Ritchson, resulting in long, grueling work hours, while various loopholes in his contract forbade extra pay for overtime or meals.

I hated life on that show. They were so bad to us. They broke so many promises. It was rough.

Ritchson points to a particularly bad moment on the production where, after filming for a long day and facing a big ride back home, he and his fellow mo-cap actors were forced to wait in a car park for hours. Since the production didn’t have to pay them any overtime, they prioritized getting the crew home first.

I’m calling my team in L.A. like ‘They won’t give us a ride home, what the f*** kind of production is this?! Get us home! We sH๏τ for 14 hours today, I wanna go home!’

When Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was released, Ritchson learned that not only were he and his fellow turtles performers not allowed to give interviews, the studio informed the press the actors were refusing to grant them. Needless to say, Ritchson wasn’t excited about making sequels.

Ritchson Tried To Get Out Of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out Of The Shadows

More promises were broken in the TMNT sequel

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out Of The Shadows was generally considered the better of the two movies, though it still only scored 38% on Rotten Tomatoes. Since the production broke every promise it had made on the original, Ritchson tried his damndest to get out of the film.

I was contractually obligated to come back for three, and I tried so hard to get off coming back for the second one.

Producers made more promises to the star, claiming he would receive backend pay and would be part of the publicity machine, but as Ritchson predicted, none of those things materialized. Ritchson doesn’t go into particular details about life on Out of the Shadows, though he didn’t appear to enjoy making it any more than the original.

Ritchson Was Thankful That Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 Was Canceled

Ritchson felt nothing but relief that Turtles 3 didn’t happen

While there were plans for three live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies, Out of the Shadows only grossed a tepid $245 million (via Box Office Mojo). For context, the 2014 original nabbed $485 million, making it clear that audiences had already checked out of this would-be franchise.

In the Collider chat, Ritchson stated he knew the series was cooked following Out of the Shadows‘ opening weekend. He was so disinterested in the franchise’s future that he couldn’t even remember if the studio called to say a third film wasn’t happening.

The next theatrical entry came with the 2023 animated adventure Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, co-written and produced by Seth Rogen. That film has zero canon ties to the live-action Bay movies, and it feels like the odds of a third entry happening now are close to nil.

It’s a shame Ritchson’s gamble on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films didn’t pay off. He went into them hoping they would introduce him to a wider audience, but between promises being reneged and the production having little respect for his work, it was an experience he’d rather forget.

Alan Ritchson Finally Found His Perfect Action Franchise With Reacher

Jack Reacher has turned Ritchson’s career around

There was endless controversy over Tom Cruise’s casting as Jack Reacher in the original movie, who was the opposite of the imposing, muscle-bound brute from the novels. Ritchson had to jump through many casting hoops to land the role in the Amazon adaptation, which changed his career instantly.

Ritchson couldn’t have been better casting, conveying the charisma, intelligence and toughness of Reacher right from his first scene. Since Reacher is one of the biggest shows on the platform, Ritchson is unlikely to move on from the character anytime soon.

In terms of his career, it has also given him everything the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles experience didn’t. His face is front and center, he’s out there doing interviews to promote it, and the role feels tailor-made to his skills. In addition to providing some job security, it gives him the freedom to work on movies in between seasons.

Ritchson’s prediction that nobody would know he was part of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies largely came true too, since his name is rarely connected to them. He was always a much better fit for a more grounded action hero like Reacher, as his subsequent success has proven.

Source: Collider/YouTube, Rotten Tomatoes, Box Office Mojo