Brian Tee talks Shredder in ‘Ninja Turtles 2’ says he’s ‘more grounded’
While promoting NBC’s Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med at STK Chicago, Brian Tee talked about playing the villain Shredder in the upcoming sequel to 2014’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
“When you’re Shredder for Halloween as a kid, and now you get to play him, it’s like a childhood dream come to life,” Tee said Monday at a party for NBC’s shows in which Tee stars in “Med,” which premiered Tuesday.
“I must have been 8. It was around when the comic books first came out, I believe, in ’84. I was a big reader. I loved these turtles that were somehow mutants and teenagers and they were ninjas. How cool is that?”
Shredder was played by Tohoru Masamune in the last film, and various actors — including former WWE Superstar Kevin Nash — in the original films in the early ’90s. The Turtles film featuring Tee as Shredder is scheduled to be released June 3.
Tee said the preparation for the role was more mental than physical.
“As far as the build, definitely a lot of weights,” Tee said. “A lot of training. But it’s more about an essence and a presence, because he’s the baddest … out there. He just has to exude that. … That’s what I really worked on.”
TMNT 2 will be directed by Dave Green (Earth to Echo) with lead actors Megan Fox and Will Arnett returning. Arrow star Stephen Amell joins the cast as Casey Jones, a move certain to excite fans.
