Who is Mondo Gecko in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem?

The official trailer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem gave audiences our first look at the film’s supporting cast,...

The official trailer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem gave audiences our first look at the film’s supporting cast, which features several of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ most iconic enemies and allies. One of the many familiar faces that showed up was Mondo Gecko, a skateboarding mutant lizard with a long history within the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. Here is everything you need to know about Mondo Gecko before Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem comes out.

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Who is Mondo Gecko?

Teenage-Mutant-Ninja-Turtles-Mondo-Gecko
Image: Paramount Plus

Mondo Gecko first appeared in the nineteenth issue of Archie Comics’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures comic book series, where he was introduced as the leader of a teenage rock band who was accidentally mutated into a humanoid gecko. Fleeing into the sewers, Mondo’s luck turns when he befriends the Turtles, who help him accept his mutation and convince him to use his new superhuman abilities for good. Soon after, Mondo would join the ranks of the Mighty Mutanimals, a team composed of several of the Turtles’ mutant allies.

Mondo Gecko would become one of the Archie Turtles’ greatest allies and formed a strong bond with Michelangelo, who eventually convinced him to mend his relationship with his still-human girlfriend, Candy. Unfortunately, after the Mutanimals’ spin-off comic of the same name was canceled, the team’s creator Ryan Brown had them killed off in a seven-issue storyline that saw Mondo and the rest of the team slaughtered by a gang of cybernetically-enhanced ninjas hired by the Mutanimals’ demonic archenemy Null.

Mondo later appeared in the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon, in which he was portrayed as a lizard who was mutated by the same canister of mutagen that transformed the Turtles and Splinter. Initially working for a manipulative criminal named Mr. X, Mondo was convinced to change his ways after meeting and befriending Michelangelo and once again became a recurring ally for the Turtles.

Related: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – Seth Rogen Brings the Turtles Back and They Finally Feel Like Real Teenagers

A similar version of Mondo appeared in the 2012 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon, where he was given a drastic re-design that resembled a leopard gecko. Once again portrayed as a free-spirited teenager, Mondo was mutated by a stray canister of mutagen and forced to live on the streets. Initially serving as a courier for the Foot Clan, Mondo turned a new leaf after he befriended Michelangelo and eventually joined this series’ incarnation of the Mighty Mutanimals.

The IDW Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics series featured a radically different interpretation of Mondo that joins an equally-unusual version of the Mighty Mutanimals. With the chameleon-like ability to blend in with his surroundings, IDW’s Mondo is introduced as a follower of Old Hob, a mutant cat who formed the Mighty Mutanimals as an anti-human terrorist group. However, Mondo eventually saw the error of his ways and became an ally of the Turtles after Old Hob detonated a bomb that mutated thousands of innocent New Yorkers.

Is Mondo Gecko Good or Bad in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem?

Paul-Rudd
Image: Columbia Pictures

Mondo Gecko’s role in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem was first revealed during the 2023 Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards, where producer and screenwriter Seth Rogan unveiled the film’s official voice cast. Mondo will be voiced by Paul Rudd, who will be starring alongside many other high-profile actors and actresses like Dwayne Johnson and Maya Rudolph.

While the details of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant‘s plot are still hazy, the official trailer hinted that Mondo is a member of a villainous incarnation of the Mighty Mutanimals. Given his history within the series, it’s likely that this version of Mondo will end up fighting alongside the heroes in a half-shell by the end.

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Author
Drew Kopp
Drew Kopp has been a writer at Attack of the Fanboy for three months and has covered Baldur's Gate 3, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Ahsoka. He has a Bachelor's in Creative Writing and loves writing about indie games and celebrity gossip. When he isn't writing, he can be found reading fantasy books or rocking out as Bard in Dungeons & Dragons.