Paramount Pictures has released the first trailer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, the new animated film based on Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s iconic martial arts superhero franchise, released last week. While the film is dazzling Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse-inspired art style certainly left a glowing impression, it was the brief visual nod of the trailer Jujitsu Kaisenone of the most popular anime of recent years, which caught our attention and proved that no matter what, Donatello is still the lovable nerd he’s always been.
Shortly after the trailer was released last week, eagle-eyed viewers spotted Donatello wearing a sticker that resembled Satoru Gojo Jujitsu Kaisen on his trademark bō staff. The fan-favorite character (and Polygon-certified anime crush) is not only the mentor of series protagonist Yuji Itadori, but arguably the most powerful Jujutsu wizard in the world.
Twitter user @alvinlaurentt even shared recently leaked concept art for the movie to confirm Gojo’s tiny cameo in the upcoming TMNT movie.
It’s a charming little Easter egg, and one that only makes sense given that the movie re-imagines whether turtles would exist in today’s world. I mean they are Teen mutant Ninja Finally, turtles; of course, they’d be fans of director Sunghoo Park and studio MAPPA’s hugely popular supernatural martial arts anime series, which will return for a second season in July. We haven’t seen any other big or small anime Easter eggs in the trailer, but rest assured we’ll keep our eyes on the screen when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem debuting later this year.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem will be released in theaters on August 4. The animated film is co-directed by Jeff Rowe and storyboard artist Kyle Spears (The Mitchells vs. the Machines), and produced by Seth Rogen (Pineapple Express, The Fables).
