This 12 months, Playmates Toys celebrates its sixtieth anniversary producing premiere motion figures. However after I go to Playmates’ sales space on the 2026 Toy Truthful, I am unable to assist however detect a touch of disappointment within the air too. Not too long ago, the information hit that, after practically 40 years, Playmates misplaced the license to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, its signature toyline which started again in 1987, when Playmates financed the primary season of the unique cartoon sequence.
Since then, Playmates has been part of each main iteration of the Turtles, together with the newest film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem and its varied tie-ins. However, whereas the license runs out on Dec. 31, 2026 and shifts to Mattel, the corporate is planning some thrilling toys earlier than that looming date hits.
Undoubtedly, the road producing essentially the most pleasure is the TMNT x GI Joe crossover, on which Playmates partnered with Hasbro. With each properties being massive within the Nineteen Eighties, there are tons of crossover of their respective fanbases, making them a pure match. In capturing the look of the toys, Playmates’ VP of boys advertising and marketing Pat Linden tells me, “The figures have extra of a Turtle-vibe to them, however the autos have extra of a GI Joe vibe to them, however they’ve Turtle parts included into them. For example, with the copter, we have added the Turtle shell texture to it.”
With an analogous aesthetic, Playmates may also be re-releasing the 1991 Turtle Tank car and a four-pack of basic TMNT figures in army gear. The latter of which, Linden notes, features a re-release of the 1988 Turtle Trooper parachute, a basic merchandise that many collectors (myself included) discovered tough to maintain in fine condition over the previous 4 a long time. As a part of the classics line, the Turtles from the 2012 sequence may also get yet one more launch earlier than time runs out, as will 4 basic deep-cut villains: Antrax, Scale Tail, Wyrm, and Chrome Dome can be again on the cabinets of their unique toy varieties in addition to their reimagined variations featured just lately within the Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon sequence and the theatrical brief Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 – Misplaced in New Jersey.
Except for just a few new TMNT minis that may also hit cabinets in 2026, that’ll be it for Playmates and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Whereas some followers are excited to see what Mattel, the brand new license holder for the TMNT, will usher in 2027, I am unable to assist however be saddened by the tip of Playmates’ time with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. To place it fairly merely, the Turtles would not be what they’re — and won’t even exist in any respect right now — if it weren’t for Playmates. This closing batch of toys is not only a nostalgia play, it is a salute to the unimaginable work performed during the last 40 years.
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