Megan Fox returns as April O’Neil in Paramount’s TMNT: Out of The Shadows (in theaters now). The talented actress and soon-to-be mom of three sat down with us for a round table chat before heading off to an appearance on the Jimmy Kimmel Show. She mentioned she was fighting bronchitis but you’d never guess that she wasn’t feel well. Fox looked fashionable in a long flowing summer dress that showed off her adorable baby bump.
The actress spoke to us about her love for the Turtles (Mikey is her favorite just like my daughter), being a mom and why her kids won’t watch her films just yet and if fans will see more of her on New Girl.
Is it a challenge working with computer generated turtles?
It’s not difficult because we have guys wearing motion capture suits. We have really good actors that are really funny; they improve, dance, beat box and do all the stuff the turtles do that you see in the movies. It’s a really fun process.
Why does Casey Jones need to man up?
He hasn’t made one of these movies before so he’s complaining about doing his own stunt work and running in motorcycle boots. I have to do these movies usually in heels and I do the same amount of stunts and running but insanely comfortable shoes.
He has to man up because you can say that it hurts but you can’t say that it hurts, because look at what I’m wearing and what I’m doing. You have to pretend to be tougher than that.
Will your kids see the movies?
When they are older; they are still really frightened by things that aren’t scary.
What do you think audiences will be mostly excited about this film?
I think it’s bigger, there’s more action and it’s definitely more kid-friendly than the first one. It’s also more true to the 90s cartoon which I think a lot of people really love. It’s really light-hearted and it’s a good time. It doesn’t take itself very seriously at all.
What is your favorite TMNT movie?
My favorite is The Secret of the Ooze which has the Vanilla Ice cameo.
Megan and my daughter love Mikey!
What draws you to the turtles?
When I was little I loved them because my older sister loved them. It was such a deeply engrained positive childhood experience. I really loved Mickey; maybe because my sister was so much older. I didn’t have that kind of relationship with brothers or sisters [like the turtles do], they are outcasts together and support one another. It’s an interesting thing that maybe speaks to me on some level.
Do you view April as a role model?
I do in some ways. It’s hard to have a really strong female character in a movie this size that’s geared toward kids and coming out in the summer. This is not the time when people make big feminist statements! I do think, however, it’s nice to see a character who is not really focused on getting a boyfriend or falling in love. She’s more focused on her relationship with the turtles and helping them. She follows life’s adventure; she’s not distracted by boys which I think is a good thing.
As a mother of boys how are you parenting so your boys grow up to be enlightened men?
My sons will be feminists. First of all, their father is really respectful. He’s a positive role model for them because they’ll never watch their father act in a way or speak in a way that is degrading toward women or reflects poorly on women. I’m really engaged with them and I give them full access to ask any questions they want. I don’t want to keep anything off limits in terms of anything they might wonder about or want to know. I don’t ‘think it’s wrong to be a friend to your child. I try to speak to them from a place of humility; being humble as a parent I am able to admit when I’m wrong and when I’ve made mistakes. I think the more a little boy has respect for his mother obviously the more respect he’ll have for women in general because I’m the filter for how he sees from the rest of the world.
Will you return to New Girl?
I’ll be back for half the season and we’ll see what happens. I don’t think anyone would love for Reagan to take Nick away from Jess. I don’t think that’s how it will end, but I haven’t seen it. What I like about Elizabeth Meriwether is that she doesn’t like to pit women against each other. I think she’ll find a really creative way of exploring Jess’s inner conflict. He seems happy should I intervene. If I would have to guess, I would think that he will find that his soul is most drawn to his soul mate.
