Leatherhead is a fictional character in the ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (''TMNT'') is an American media franchise created by comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Donatello (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), D ...

'' (''TMNT'') comics and all related media. The character first appeared in ''

Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (called ''Tales of the TMNT'' in its later Volume 2 incarnation) is an anthology comic book series that was published by Mirage Studios starting in May 1987. It acted as a companion book to the main ...

'' #6 (August 1988) and was created by Ryan Brown. He is depicted as a

mutated In biology, a mutation is an alteration in the nucleic acid sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extrachromosomal DNA. Viral genomes contain either DNA or RNA. Mutations result from errors during DNA replication, DNA or viral rep ...

humanoid-

alligator An alligator, or colloquially gator, is a large reptile in the genus ''Alligator'' of the Family (biology), family Alligatoridae in the Order (biology), order Crocodilia. The two Extant taxon, extant species are the American alligator (''A. mis ...

. Leatherhead has been voiced by

Jim Cummings James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in over 400 titles. Cummings has frequently worked with the Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., serving as the offic ...

and Peter Renaday in the 1987 series, Frederick B. Owens and Gary K. Lewis in the 2003 series,

Peter Lurie Peter Lurie is an American voice actor, sports anchor and television personality who has worked in television shows, movies, and dubbed anime, since the mid-1990s. He is most well known for his role as the voice of Vulcan Raven in the ''Metal ...

in the 2012 series, and

Rose Byrne Mary Rose Byrne (born 24 July 1979) is an Australian actress. She made her screen debut in the film ''Dallas Doll'' (1994) , and continued to act in Australian film and television throughout the 1990s. She gained her first leading film role in ...

in the 2023 feature film '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem''.

Fictional character biography

Mirage Comics

Originally, Leatherhead was an alligator who escaped a robbery at a pet store and found his way into the sewers. While in the sewers, Leatherhead was found by a pair of TCRI Utroms, who decided to bring the creature to their headquarters. During his stay with the Utroms, Leatherhead was exposed to

mutagen In genetics, a mutagen is a physical or chemical agent that permanently changes genetic material, usually DNA, in an organism and thus increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level. As many mutations can cause cancer in ...

, which caused him to mutate into a humanoid and intelligent being. Living with the Utroms, Leatherhead was separated from them when the TCRI building self-destructed. The now-homeless Leatherhead was forced to live in the sewers where he was continually attacked by hunter Jack Marlin. During one attack by Marlin, Leatherhead meets the Turtles. After helping Leatherhead defeat Marlin, the Turtles allow him to live in their old home.

IDW Comics

Leatherhead makes his debut in the 49th issue of

IDW Publishing IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW) and is recognized as the fifth-largest comic ...

's comic series. He appears very briefly, telling Dr. Harold and Professor Honeycutt that he had some mutagen that could be used to help heal

Donatello Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi ( – 13 December 1466), known mononymously as Donatello (; ), was an Italian Renaissance sculpture, Italian sculptor of the Renaissance period. Born in Republic of Florence, Florence, he studied classical sc ...

Archie Comics

In the

Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc. (often referred to simply as Archie Comics) is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the village of Pelham, New York. The company's many titles feature the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Jug ...

series ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures'' is an American comic book series that was published from August 1988 to October 1995 by Archie Comics. The series, which was aimed at a younger audience than other ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' comic ...

'', Leatherhead is a human named Jess Harley who lived in the

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

s of Florida, and was transformed into a mutant

when Dimension X warlord Cherubae uses the Turnstone on him. At first, Shredder lures Leatherhead to work with him, until Leatherhead discovers that the Shredder is a villain. Leatherhead later becomes a wrestling hero at the Stump Asteroid and later a member of the

Mighty Mutanimals ''Mighty Mutanimals'', a superhero group within the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) franchise, emerged in the comic-book series ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures''. Composed of various mutated animals, the team collaborated with the ...

. He and the other members of that group were killed before the end of the Archie Comics run with the Turtles characters.

In other media

Animation

* Leatherhead appears in ''

'' (1987), voiced primarily by

and by Peter Renaday in the episode "Night of the Rogues". A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. This version is a wild alligator from the

Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of flooded grasslands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the K ...

who was mutated by mutagen that entered his home swamp after a botched mission by

Krang Krang (also spelled Kraang) is a supervillain appearing in ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles''-related media, most frequently in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987 TV series), 1987 animated series and its associated merchandise, such as the ''Te ...

and Shredder. He is depicted as more villainous than his comics counterpart, working with Shredder and the Rat King and never befriending the Turtles. * Leatherhead appears in ''

'' (2003), voiced by Frederick B. Owens in the

second The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of U ...

and

third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...

seasons and by Gary K. Lewis in the fourth and seventh seasons. This version was originally an exotic pet who got flushed down to the sewer, where he was found and mutated by the Utroms. He was accidentally left behind during Shredder's attack, which forced the Utroms to flee Earth, and comes to live with the Turtles. However, Leatherhead fears that he will harm the Turtles and ultimately chooses to live away from them in an abandoned subway station. * Leatherhead appears in ''

'' (2012), voiced by

. This version was originally owned by an unidentified boy until his parents discovered him and abandoned him in the sewers. There, Leatherhead was found and mutated by the Kraang. He soon comes across the Turtles, befriending

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (6March 147518February 1564), known mononymously as Michelangelo, was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was inspir ...

, but sacrifices himself to defeat the Kraang and is sent to Dimension X. Leatherhead returns in the second season episode "Into Dimension X!", having aged several decades due to time passing much faster in Dimension X. In the third season, Leatherhead becomes a founding member of the

, a ragtag group of mutants formed by

Slash Slash may refer to: * Slash (punctuation), the "/" character Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Slash (Marvel Comics) * Slash (''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'') Music * Harry Slash & The Slashtones, an American rock band * Nash th ...

. * A female incarnation of Leatherhead appears in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem'' (2023), voiced by

. This version is a member of Superfly's mutant army. * The ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem'' incarnation of Leatherhead appears in the ''

'' episode "Night of the Mechazoids" (2024), voiced again by Rose Byrne.

Video games

* Leatherhead appears as a boss in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project'' (1991). * Leatherhead appears as a boss in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time'' (1991). In the 2009 remake of the game, he is voiced by

Michael Sinterniklaas Michael Tremain Sinterniklaas () is a French-born voice actor and ADR director based in the United States. He has provided voices for a number of English-language versions of Japanese anime films and television series, as well as cartoons and v ...

. * Leatherhead appears as a boss in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist'' (1992). * Leatherhead appears as a boss in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus'' (2004). * Leatherhead makes a cameo appearance in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3: Mutant Nightmare'' (2005). * Leatherhead appears as a boss in ''

'' (2014), voiced by

André Sogliuzzo André Sogliuzzo (born August 10, 1966) is an American voice actor and comedian. He is best known for his roles in '' Avatar: The Last Airbender'', '' Darksiders II'', '' Final Fantasy XIII'', '' Jackie Chan Adventures'', '' Need for Speed: Most ...

. * Leatherhead appears in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Danger of the Ooze'' (2014), voiced again by André Sogliuzzo. * Leatherhead appears as a boss in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge'' (2022), voiced by Sean Gurnsey. * Leatherhead appears as a boss in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate'' (2023), voiced by Keith Ferguson. * The ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem'' incarnation of Leatherhead appears in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed'' (2024), voiced by

Abby Trott Abby Trott is an American voice actress. She started out by acting in puppet shows in Japan, before moving to the United States and joining Bang Zoom! Entertainment, where she has worked on numerous anime, animation, and video game series. Some ...

References

{{Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Anthropomorphic crocodilians Comics characters introduced in 1987 Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds Comics characters with accelerated healing Comics characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability Comics characters with superhuman strength Comic martial artists Fictional Cajuns Fictional characters from Florida Fictional characters from New York City Fictional crocodilians Fictional mutants Fictional professional wrestlers Fictional scientists in comics Male characters in comics Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters Video game bosses