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TMNT creator reveals that Donatello’s name was determined in a coin toss. Here’s what it almost was…
One of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles almost had another name
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Leonardo leads, Bernini does machines.
In another world, those would’ve been the lyrics to the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theme song. The famous crime-fighting Turtles all got their names after famous Renaissance artists, but it took some time to settle on which Renaissance artists it would be. In Donatello’s case, it was took weeks of debate.
During a spotlight panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman recalled how he and Peter Laird came up with the Turtles’ names.
“I said wouldn’t it be funny if they were like Leonardo Da Vinci or Michaelangelo. We laughed and said that was perfect,” Eastman said.
The duo named Leonardo, Michaelangelo, and Raphael, but had trouble coming up with the third name. “We had the first three and the last one who had an argument for two weeks. I liked the sculptor named Bernini better than Donatello. We did a coin toss, so Donatello was almost named Bernini.”
It’s interesting to think about how different TMNT lore would be if that coin had landed on the other side. Would Turtle Power be as strong as it is today if one of the Turtles was called Bernini? Sometimes the right name can make or break a character. Eastman may have lost the Bernini battle, but I think we’re all better off for it.
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