SDCC 2025: IDW Talks Turtle – Announcing New Creative Team For TMNT, A Godzilla Crossover And More
by Olly MacNamee
At their panel Friday, IDW Publishing announced its plans for the future of the recently releaunched Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic books, starting with issue #13 and the future of the Turtle at IDW in general with several announcemenst and first looks.
And that new creative tyeam is Eisner-winning writer Gene Luen Yang (Shang-Chi, Superman Smashes the Klan, Avatar: The Last Airbender, American Born Chinese) and artist Freddie E. Williams II (Batman/TMNT, Turtles of Grayskull, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe,Godzilla vs Mighty Morphin Power Rangers). Also joining a the TMNT Group Editor is Jake Thomas,
“Starting their run with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #13 in December, this all-new story arc will provide fans with a fresh jumping on point as the Heroes in a Half-Shell are back together and hopeful about the future of the city, but there’s a dark and personal danger lurking in the shadows as a deadly new assassin makes their debut.”
Speaking of his new gig, and his own love of these heroes in a half-shell, Yang said:
“I’ve been a fan of the TMNTsince I was young. I remember watching the ‘80s cartoon with my brother and then reenacting the Turtles’ adventures with our action figures. I read my first issue of TMNT at a friend’s house, and I was blown away by the melding of gritty martial arts action and wild, out-of-left-field ideas. Many years later, I began my cartooning career in American independent comics. All of us from that corner of comics owe a huge debt to Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. Their talent and creativity, both as comics creators and as businessmen, carved out a path for the rest of us to follow. In fact, the very first comic I ever self-published was funded by a grant from Peter Laird’s Xeric Foundation. I’ve admired the Turtles for a long, long time. I’m absolutely thrilled to get to tell their stories at IDW.”
Williams, no stranger to working on the Turtles, added:
“Finally I’m getting to REALLY scratch my TMNT itch! I’ve been so lucky to draw the Turtles on covers and crossovers, but it’s not enough, never enough. I LOVE the Turtles! The original Mirage comics were instrumental in making me fall in love with the comic book medium, and of course I am SUPER inspired by the POWER and TEXTURE in that early Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird art! Now, after begging Editor-in-Chief Bobby Curnow for over a decade, I am so happy to draw my first FULL ON TMNTseries! My goal is to draw at least 450 Turtles per page in each issue! Can’t wait for everyone to see what we’re working on, I’m having a BLAST!”
To mark this mini-relaunch, TMNT #13, will have a special blind bag variant for collectors, featuring variants by creators Daniel Warren Johnson, David Nakayama, Clayton Crain, and more.
There will alos be an annual this October from writer Kenny Porter and artists Michael Shelfer and Maria Keane, bridging the gap between both runs as well as holiday-themed variant covers by Jared Cullum across various TMNT titles, with this first one celebrating Halloween this October.
Then, ahead of the new creative teamm’s debut issue the Turtles are “stepping into a multidimensional tournament” with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Battle Nexus is an action-packed five-week event kicking off in November.
“Featuring beloved characters from various incarnations of the franchise – including the classic Shredder from Mirage Studios, Metalhead from the 2012 animated series, Slash returning from the dead and the IDW debut of Ninjara – this adrenaline-filled adventure is crafted by fan-favorite TMNT creatives, including writers Tom Waltz, Paul Allor, Sophie Campbell, Caleb Goellner, and Erik Burnham with art from the Escorza brothers, Ben Bishop, Vitor Cafaggi, Omar Francia, and Hendry Prasetya.”
Plus, there’s more. Just like everyone else in comics at the moment, the Turtles battle Godzilla in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles X Godzilla from writer Tim Seeley and artist Fero Pe expect “a jaw-dropping blend of the two pop culture franchises as it’s revealed the Foot Clan exists to stop the onslaught of kaiju attacks, but Shredder and General Krang have different plans to give mutagen a giant upgrade.”
If you’re a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle fan, their future at IDW is certainly looking good.
