Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III

Did You Know?

• The British PG version was censored for Michelangelo's nunchaku, using alternate material; the cuts were waived for the DVD release.
• Arrow Video released the film on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray in December 2025 in the UK, US, and Canada.

Plot

In 1603 feudal Japan, four samurai capture a young prince named Kenshin. A year after defeating the Shredder, April O'Neil buys gifts at a flea market for the Turtles and Splinter, giving Michelangelo a lamp, Donatello a radio, Leonardo a book on swords, Raphael a fedora, and Splinter an ancient Japanese scepter. In the past, Lord Norinaga berates his son Kenshin for disgracing the family; Kenshin argues against his father's desire for war. English trader Walker arrives to supply Norinaga with firearms. Kenshin finds the scepter in a temple and reads its inscription. The scepter lights up, swapping April and Kenshin across time. Walker imprisons April. In the present, Kenshin explains the swap to the Turtles, who decide to rescue April within 60 hours before the scepter's power fades. Casey Jones guards Kenshin. The Turtles warp to the past, replaced by four of Norinaga's honor guards. In feudal Japan, Michelangelo is ambushed by Mitsu, and the scepter is taken. The other Turtles rescue April and a prisoner named Whit. Villagers attack them, mistaking them for Norinaga's forces. Mitsu, the rebel leader, unmasks Raphael and realizes Michelangelo is her captive. The Turtles accompany Mitsu to her village, where Walker's men are burning it. The Turtles help fight, Michelangelo saves Mitsu's brother Yoshi from a burning house, and Leonardo performs CPR, earning the villagers' gratitude.

Cast

Paige Turco plays April O'Neil, a reporter for Channel 3 News. Elias Koteas portrays both Casey Jones, an ex-hockey player turned vigilante, and Whit, an English sellsword imprisoned by Lord Norinaga. Stuart Wilson plays Walker, a mercenary and weapons marketeer. John Aylward appears as Niles, Walker's right-hand man. Sab Shimono plays Lord Norinaga, a tyrannical warlord. Vivian Wu portrays Mitsu, a rebel leader who stole the scepter. Mak Takano plays Benkei. Henry Hayashi plays Kenshin, Norinaga's son who swaps places with April. Travis A. Moon plays Yoshi, Mitsu's young brother. Brian Tochi voices Leonardo, the leader with a blue mask and two katana swords. Corey Feldman voices Donatello, the smartest with a purple mask and bo staff. Tim Kelleher voices Raphael, the aggressive member with a red mask and two sai. Robbie Rist voices Michelangelo, the playful member with an orange mask and nunchakus. James Murray voices Splinter. Rist and Tochi are the only actors to voice the same characters in all three live-action TMNT movies; Feldman returned after being absent for the second film. Multiple performers handled in-suit and facial-control duties for each Turtle, and Murray also puppeteered Splinter.

Production

Principal photography ran from June 15 to August 5, 1992. Writer and director Stuart Gillard stated in 2024 that Golden Harvest approached him based on his television experience. He flew to Massachusetts several times to discuss the script with co-creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. After several revisions, his time-travel idea was greenlit. Eastman and Laird insisted Shredder not return and that the sequel be edgier. The time scepter was loosely based on the character Renet from the Mirage comics, but she was not featured. Gillard cited the scene where Yoshi befriends Raphael as a favorite.

Reception

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III debuted at number one at the U.S. box office with $12.4 million from 2,087 screens. It grossed $42.2 million domestically and $12.2 million internationally, for a worldwide total of $54.4 million. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 19% approval rating with an average of 4.10/10 from 32 reviews; the consensus calls it a sequel too many with a tired time-travel gimmick. Metacritic gives a score of 40 out of 100 from 12 critics, indicating mixed or average reviews. Michael Wilmington of the Los Angeles Times noted distributors kept the film from critics and called it sequel hell. James Berardinelli gave it one out of four stars, saying the script could have been written by children. TV Guide gave two out of four stars and suggested banishing the characters to a retirement sewer. Co-creator Peter Laird expressed dislike for the film in the 2014 documentary Turtle Power.