Sam Rockwell formed a lasting friendship with Leif Tilden on TMNT set
The Foot Clan headquarters in the original 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film is a wild playground for the gang’s younger recruits. A wispy-mustached teen who offers cigarettes and brags, “Anything you wanna do, do it,” was played by future Academy Award winner Sam Rockwell, who is credited as “Head Thug.” Rockwell remembers the shoot fondly: “We were in North Carolina.
I had a great time. It was all practical effects. We had the animatronic puppets and it was amazing. It was one of my first jobs. I was 19. It was wild.” More important to him was the friendship he made on set. “I met one of my best friends on set, Leif Tilden, who played Donatello,” Rockwell said.
Tilden returned the praise: “Sam's an incredible dude. He's a very wise old soul... As an actor, Sam has a gift.