Actor and martial artist Ernie Reyes Jr. is immortalized with a NECA Toys SDCC exclusive action figure for his role as Keno in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze.
Ernie Reyes Jr. has had a lengthy career playing in martial arts roles, starting with The Last Dragon (1985) when he was only 13. He has also starred in Red Sonja (1985), Surf Ninjas (1993), Rush Hour 2 (2001), The Rundown (2003), and appeared in multiple TV and movie roles over the years. However, he is probably best known as the pizza delivery guy and martial arts enthusiast who made friends with the "Heroes in a Half-shell" in the sequel to the 1990 live action film.
The full reveal of the figure was posted on NECA's Instagram account. Ernie Reyes Jr. himself shared the full reveal of the SDCC Keno exclusive action figure on his Twitter account.
SDCC Exclusive @NECA_TOYS #tmnt pic.twitter.com/2dUmcBWFP7
— Ernie Reyes Jr. (@erniereyesjr) May 23, 2023
The Keno action figure has optional interchangeable heads based on the actor’s likeness as he appeared in the 1991 film. The picture also reveals the box has additional interchangeable hands, a scooter, and accessories such as a Roy’s Pizza box and bag. As with the standard set by NECA toys, the Keno action figure has multiple points of articulation and the included accessories are highly detailed.
NECA actually teased the Keno action figure in December 2022, as part of its annual "12 Days of Downloads":
It’s our tradition to commemorate the year with an updated set of visual guides to our most popular action figure lines. Every day leading up to Christmas we’ll post a new visual guide as an extra-large download. Use them as checklists, posters, whatever you desire… and be sure to keep an eye out for some surprises!
The visual guide includes figures based on the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles live action film and its sequel, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze. There are also figures for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Musical Mutagen Tour and a crossover set with the Universal Monsters.
The Musical Mutagen Tour action figure set appears to be paying homage to the Coming Out of Their Shells studio album and live musical concert tour that took place from 1990 to 1992. Meanwhile, the TMNT x Universal Monsters action figure set has the Turtles, Master Splinter, Casey Jones, and April O’Neil cosplaying as one of the classic Universal Monsters.
Interestingly, the visual guide would technically include two figures played by Ernie Reyes Jr. Before the actor played the role of Keno in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze, he was also the suit actor for Donatello in the 1990 movie. As Donatello, he also did the martial arts sequences showcased in the first film.
The Keno NECA Toys exclusive action figure will be available at the San Diego Comic-Con running from July 19 to July 23, 2023. Meanwhile, the next film based on the TMNT, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem will be released on August 2, 2023.
