This article is presented by Paramount Pictures.
Like any kid growing up in the 1980s,Seth Rogenwanted to be aTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.
I grew up with them.
And I grew up loving them, Rogen tellsDen of Geek.
I could not have absorbed it more thoroughly.
Decades after yelling Cowabunga!
in his familys living room, Rogen is now a Hollywood mainstay involved in cult classics and mega-hits alike.
You may know him best from R-rated comedies likeSuperbad,Pineapple Express, andThis Is the End.
On the big screen Rogen has done it all, from fighting crime asthe Green Hornetto blowing up dictators.
Den of Geek: What is your history with theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?
Seth Rogen: I grew up watchingTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The animated series came out in 1987 when I was five years old.
And then the live action movie came out in 1990.
So it was perfectly geared towards someone my age, and I loved it.
I started taking karate [classes] probably because of theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
My dad bought me nunchucks because of theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
I was just kind of obsessed with them.
Why are you playing Bebop?
I only play warthog-punch in creatures.
I had this funny idea of Bebop and Rocksteady being two angry, New York bros.
I loveJohn Cenaand so yeah….
Whether I was Bebop or Rocksteady was ultimately, you know, somewhat interchangeable in my head.
What else can you tell us about him?
I mean, honestly, [Bebop and Rocksteady] are just kind of angry New Yorkers.
Just to see them be like angry New York bros was really funny to me, as well.
How do you voice a character like that?
I watched every season ofJersey Shore.
So, yeah, kind of like an angry, aggressiveJersey Shoreguy was where I started.
Did you record in the same way that all the turtles kids recorded together?
Did you record with John Cena as Rocksteady?
We werent always in the same city, but we recorded over Zoom together.
What was the vibe?
It was silly and goofy and I remember Rose Byrne screaming like a maniac in this Australian accent.
Everyone is just so funny and we really had fun with it.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhemhits theaters on Aug. 2.
*Parts of this interview are courtesy of EPK.
