Leonardo

This article is about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character. For the American actor, see Leonardo DiCaprio.

Character
Name:	Leonardo
Occupation:	Ninja, Hero
Relationships:
Fandom:	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Other:
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Leonardo, often going by the nickname Leo, is a fictional character from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. He is usually the oldest of his brothers and is their leader in most adaptations, often characterized as mature, levelheaded, and the tactician of the group. He wields a pair of twin katanas.

Canon

Rise of the TMNT (2018)

In Rise of the TMNT, Leo's character is starkly different from other versions. He isn't the leader of his family, leaving that role up to Raph. Rather than leading, he takes on the role of the "face man," using his charm and wit to out-think the enemy on multiple occasions. He is often cocky or overconfident, but it is shown that he uses this act to cover up his insecurities. The creators have described this version of Leo as a Leo who is free from the responsibilities of being a leader, and is able to flourish as a result. Leo does become the leader at the end of season two, immediately prior to the events of the movie, and spends the entire plot of the movie learning to accept the role and take it seriously.

Fandom

Pairings

Leonardo is most often paired with one of his brothers in fanworks. Although, he is also often shipped with his canonical love interest Karai in the 2012 Turtles series. He is also sometimes shipped with Usagi Yuichi or Miyamoto, a character from the Samurai Rabbit series which often has crossovers with TMNT. In Mutant Mayhem (2023), Leo shows an interest in his iteration of April O'Neil.

• Leonardo/Raphael
• Donatello/Leonardo
• Leonardo/Michelangelo
• Karai/Leonardo
• Leonardo/Usagi
  • AKA Leosagi
• April O'Neil/Leonardo

Common Tropes in Fanworks

• Futurefic: focusing on an older, adult Leonardo. These can sometimes be sad or bittersweet, often because Leo no longer a part of the group
• Bad Future Timeline: Similar to Futurefic, but focused specifically on the apocalyptic timeline shown at the beginning of the Rise of the TMNT Movie. Despite the dark material, these fics often share lighthearted moments in-between the chaos of the apocalypse. They also tend to focus on Leo's relationship with Casey Junior.

Fanworks

Fanart

• Leonardo TMNT by Red-J
• TMNT : Leo by inhyuklee
• Leonardo, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle by Bronxboy79

Fanfiction

• ride it out by leones
• Leonardo's Secrets byofdogsandwriting
• Big Brother by orphan_account

Example Art Gallery

• 

  leo by samuraiblack (2012), this piece inspired by Leonardo's look in the 2012 series

• 

  *LEONARDO* goodbye, my brothers... part of the series Goodbye, my brothers... by DeadPea (2013)

Archives and Links

• Leonardo (TMNT) tag at Archive of Our Own
• Leonardo, Ninja Turtles at FanFiction.net
• Leo-Fans-Forever, Deviantart group

Resources

• Wikipedia
• Leonardo at Turtlepedia
• Leonardo at the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Wiki for the 2012 series