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Nickelodeon buys Turtles franchise - SciFiNow

Nickelodeon buys Turtles franchise

Popular property fetches large price tag.

teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-3Children’s entertainment giant Nickelodeon, a subsidiary of Viacom, has bought the licence for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise from the Mirage Group and 4Kids Entertainment for around $60 million.

“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles shares a comedic sensibility with the Nickelodeon DNA, with added layers of action and fantasy that have kept this property an evergreen favorite with multiple generations of audiences,” said Cyma Zarghami, the president of Nickelodeon in a statement. Nickelodeon is planning to develop a new CG television series with the property, as well as a feature film with Paramount, another Viacom company.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was first created in 1984 by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird as a comic book, which eventually grew to an animated television series that soared in popularity among children through the Eighties. Feature films, video games, and an extensive range of merchandise tie-ins followed, and the property recently celebrated its 25th birthday.