What are the 9 best Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies of all time? Here they are ranked from best to worst and what made them great (or awful).
Since the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles debuted in 1984, they’ve been beloved. A debate could be made that no comic book characters’ popularity has skyrocketed as quickly as theirs. Soon after the comic was released, they got their first cartoon and series of insanely sought-after toys. Decades later and fans still purchase the original action figures.
The love for TMNT continued when their first movie was released in 1990. That’s a six-year turnaround. How many comic book franchises can boast that?
In terms of their movies, TMNT has produced nine films since their first one debuted back in 1990. Each of them had a different feeling, theme, and direction. Thankfully, while things changed, the core parts that made the turtles special remained. Leonardo leads, Donatello does machines, Raphael is cool but crude, and Michelangelo is a party dude (you have to quote the theme song).
Unfortunately, not all of the movies are created equal. Some of them are great while others are, well, bad. Here they are from worst to best and what their rating is.
9. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3
"“This is absolutely the worst rescue I have ever had.” – April O’Neil"
In Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3, the turtles find an ancient relic that sends them back to feudal Japan. In theory, this sounds like a great idea. Seeing the four mutant brothers go back in time should be fun. They could learn more about where their fighting style originated. Add their immature nature to the mix and this should be a win. It was not a win. This movie was an absolute mess.
At times, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 was goofy – something fans would expect since the franchise’s audience was mostly young fans of the cartoon and not the comics. Then, the movie would turn around and add an oddly placed serious moment. It was as if they tried to combine the first and second movies into one. The problem is it was executed poorly.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 joins the group of disappointing third movies. This could be why it took over a decade for the next TMNT movie to be released. The-powers-that-be may have thought the turtles only worked in TV show form. As we’ve seen over the years, it’s not the product. It’s the creative team that makes it good or bad.
Rating: 2 out of 10
8. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)
"“Of course, you’ve all tasted the five-cheese pizza. But this,…cheesemongers have speculated it’s existence for centuries. Da Vinci’s original masterpiece. I submit you – novantanove formaggio! The 99 cheese pizza. – Splinter"
There’s a lot going on with Michael Bay’s version of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Before the movie was released, fans hated the design. The four turtles looked terrifying. However, what would you expect real-life ninja turtles to look like? Then there was the casting. Most people didn’t think that Megan Fox would be a good April O’Neil. Whether or not she was is debatable. Now we come to the final product. Overall, it wasn’t that bad. The problem with this movie comes from the fans.
Michael Bay wasn’t a fan favorite for what he did with most of the Transformers movies. Of course, bringing him into another popular franchise from the 1980s would be met with criticism. Nevertheless, people held out hope that it would be good. And it was. Sure, the movie had its faults, but it wasn’t awful. It was average. The issue was that fans didn’t want average. They wanted better than that.
However, this movie may have been doomed before it came out. Go back and check this movie out with new eyes and an openness. You’ll find yourself enjoying it more than you originally did. There are some cringe-worthy moments that you may want to skip, but it’s still entertaining.
Rating: 5 out of 10
7. TMNT (2007)
"“YOU AREN’T READY. You’re impatient, and hot-tempered, and more importantly… I’m better than you.” – Leonardo to Raphael"
2007’s TMNT came out at a time when animated features seemed to be leaning heavily on CGI. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles being a part of this trend was a logical move.
Visually, this movie didn’t look bad. Each of the turtles had a slightly different look that helped distinguish them other than their mask covers. It was even a nice touch that this wasn’t the typical story. The four brothers were living different lives after Shredder and the Foot Clan were defeated. Somehow it missed the mark.
Like Michael Bay’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, this movie got more negativity than it deserved. It had brilliant voice actors, it looked good, and was genuinely fun. There was also a fight between Raphael and Leonardo, a battle fans have waited to see. All of these pieces and this was still only an average movie. The problem here was the story.
When we look back at movies, it shouldn’t be difficult to remember who the antagonists were. These villains’ motivation was clear, but nothing really stuck out. That’s with a bunch of monsters and stone soldiers. A good movie, but not enough for it to be more than that.
Rating: 7 out of 10
6. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows
"“You shouldn’t want them all to think the same, it’s their different points of view that make the team strong. A good leader understands this. A good brother accepts it.” – Splinter"
The second of Michael Bay’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies seemed to focus on the entertainment side. There were more jokes and fighting and that’s what the majority of people want to see. Ninja hits and humor from humanoid turtles. That improvement could be attributed to this project having a better group of supporting stars.
WWE’s Sheamus and Gary Anthony Williams were fantastic as Bebop and Rocksteady. Tyler Perry wouldn’t have been this writer’s pick for Baxter Stockman, but he fit the role perfectly. It’s disappointing that he didn’t get to be seen as a fly. And, of course, there’s Stephen Amell. A guy who every nerd loves. The movie could have made better use of him as Casey Jones, but he did well with the material given.
Since people didn’t have the same expectations, it was easier to enjoy the sequel. You could sit back and just watch the turtles fight two mutants, Krang, and see the Technodrome being built. Granted, the story was pretty bad. If it wasn’t for Krang, it’s doubtful anyone would remember the point of this movie. However, no one was expecting a Michael Bay TMNT movie to be full of deep moments with an incredible plot. That being said, it was still entertaining. It’s shocking that more people didn’t like this one as much as the first.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
5. Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
"“Young lady, I assure you. There’s no amount of greasy cheese bread that could surpass my abilities. – Alfred Pennyworth"
Recently, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been crossing over with everyone. They’ll be mixing it up with the Street Fighters and have a crossover with Stranger Things in separate comic books. Before that happened, the Ninja Turtles ended up in Gotham City and met Batman. While the Dark Knight wasn’t the first hero that the turtles met outside of their universe, this adventure was definitely the best.
When crossovers like this happen, it’s easy to mess things up. When the turtles met the Power Rangers in live-action show, it was bad. This, on the other hand, may have been even better than the comic and that says a lot.
Everything about Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was executed well, particularly the fight between Shredder and Batman. When this came out, it was easily the comic book movie fight of the year. The final battle in Avengers: Endgame was good, but this was better. These are some of the best fighters in comics and their encounter disappoint. The fun continued when the Turtles fought mutated versions of Gotham’s villains. The only disappointing part is we’ll likely never see a Jokerized Shredder in action.
Rating: 8 out of 10
4. Turtles Forever
"“Chumly, if we’re not the turtles, I don’t know who is.” – 1987 Raphael"
This Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles project ended up being a project that gave Ninja Turtle fans a lot to enjoy. Of course, nostalgia is a big part of what made Turtles Forever good. People who grew up with the first TMNT cartoon loved that the two teams’ interactions didn’t disappoint.
Raphael was a standout. He couldn’t stand the 1987 Turtles. However, Michelangelo loved them. And while the 1987 versions were goofy, each of them could hold their own in a fight. Now, when all of them met the original comic book turtles, Raphael found out that he and his brothers weren’t the toughest Turtles of all time.
Turtles Forever was initially placed at No.2 on this list. However, you have to put your bias aside when making lists like this. Nevertheless, there’s still so much to love about this movie.
Among them is Shredder proving to be the most evil version of himself. He was willing to wipe himself from existence if it meant that every Ninja Turtle went with him. That is some truly wicked stuff. In the end, Shredder not only loses, he’s gone for good. This perfectly ends the story of the Ninja Turtles from the early 2000s.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
3. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Secret of the Ooze
"“First, we must observe the ancient ritual of the, uh, uh… traditional pre-fight donut.” – Leonardo"
If you’ve been a fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles since the 1980s, you probably find this ranking blasphemous. Secret of the Ooze is easily the most fun you’ll have watching most TMNT projects. The movie is entertaining from start to finish.
It almost immediately gets right into the action with a new character named Keno fighting goons in a toy store. Then, the turtles show up and it gets even better. And, unlike the first movie, this fight scene didn’t take place in the dark and it wasn’t taken as seriously. At one point, Michelangelo is using sausage links as nunchucks. How could you not enjoy that?
As comical as the movie was (and it hits a 10 on the comedy meter), the story wasn’t as good as its predecessor. There were moments where things could have been taken more seriously and they weren’t.
Is that a bad thing? It’s absolutely not. People aren’t going to see TMNT movies looking for emotional depth. If it happens, though, it’s an added bonus. Especially when it’s done right. Considering this is a franchise about mutant turtles, the creators have to do a lot for someone to take emotional moments seriously.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
2. Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
"“My name is Casey Jones, and the reason I have the photo and your tech is because you gave it to me. But not yet, because I’m from… the future!” – Casey Jones"
One thing that holds true is that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles can be fun for everyone. Even the projects that are geared towards kids can be enjoyed by all ages. This is where Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comes in.
This movie has no business being as fun as it is while having a healthy dose of seriousness mixed in. For example, the project starts in a future where the Ninja Turtles lose and the world is ruined for it. Not something you’d expect from a TV-Y7 project. Yet, here we are. It wasn’t graphic, but it certainly set a tone.
Even if you haven’t watched the show, we highly recommend watching this movie. You’ll want to go back and watch what came before it, especially to see how Leonardo became arrogant and why Raphael seems more mature and less emotional than everyone else. Other than being strong, he’s nothing like the Raphaels we have previously seen which is a nice change.
This movie is better than anyone is giving it credit for. Especially with a final act that brought a tear to this writer’s eye.
Rating: 8.9 out of 10
1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
"“Wise men say, ‘Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza.'” – Michelangelo"
As you can see by the rating, the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie didn’t win by much. This project nailed all of the major things you’d want from the turtles.
First of all, the action was hard-hitting and still fun. Even with the advancement of technology in subsequent movies, the classic puppets did it better. For example, the fight in the apartment is still better than any other action scene in a TMNT movie. It helps that there was an emotional element to it.
Raphael and Leonardo’s argument leads to Raphael getting ambushed and almost killed. When the heroes get to safety, Leo feels guilty and doesn’t leave Raphael’s side while he’s recovering. When Raphael wakes up, the two brothers have a moment that’s more emotional than it has any business being. Over two decades later and that scene still holds up. It helps solidify their love and rivalry which is one of the most important parts of the TMNT lore. Not even Donatello’s jokes could stop this from hitting the audience’s heart.
Lastly, the chemistry was amazing, the comedy was top-notch, and each of the turtles had memorable scenes. Overall, you’re not going to get a better Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie. In short, cowabunga says it all.
Rating: 10 out of 10
How would you rate the TMNT movies? Where would you place them? Let us know in the comments below.