Patrick Stewart has died at the age of 86, leaving an acting career that extended well beyond his celebrated portrayals of Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek and Professor Charles Xavier in X-Men. Among his less prominent film credits was the 2007 feature TMNT, in which he voiced the villain Max Winters.
Directed by Kevin Munroe, the film was Paramount’s attempt to bring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles back to theaters after a period of television animation. Rather than placing Shredder at the center of the conflict, it introduces Winters, an industrialist created specifically for the movie instead of adapted from the comics.
The story unfolds after Shredder’s defeat, with the Turtles having drifted apart and Splinter struggling to preserve their family bond. As strange events develop in New York City, the brothers must reunite to confront Winters’s army of ancient monsters. Splinter’s voice performers include Mako Iwamatsu and Greg Baldwin.
Winters’s history reaches back to his identity as Yaotl, a warlord who pursued world domination. Seeking immortality through the power of a portal that opens once every 3,000 years, he eventually came to regard eternal life as a curse rather than a reward.
Stewart’s deep, resonant delivery gave Winters a menacing presence, contrasting with the comedy he had demonstrated in American Dad. The ensemble also features Chris Evans as Casey Jones, predating his portrayal of Captain America.
