Michael Bay once teased that 14 Transformers movies were in development, and here is a prediction for what sequels and spinoffs might be. Paramount began developing ambitious plans to turn the Hasbro action figures into a movie shared universe in 2015. This came as Michael Bay’s Transformers movies delivered back-to-back $1 billion hits despite poor reviews, making the franchise look like one of the safest bets in Hollywood. That is why the studio assembled a Transformers writers room filled with some of the most talented writers in the industry to formulate ideas for sequels and spinoffs that could expand the franchise.
The success of the writers room included coming up with the idea for Transformers: The Last Knight‘s script, which enthused Michael Bay enough to convince him to direct it. Although the film was the last that Bay will direct, his time working with the Transformers writers room and his role as a franchise producer helped save the Transformers franchise. This led him to tell MTV in 2017 that Paramount had 14 Transformers movie scripts or ideas. Some information about the titles being developed has been revealed, but others have remained secret. Here is a prediction for the future Transformers movie sequels and spinoffs Michael Bay promised.
10 Bumblebee Was One Of Michael Bay’s 14 Transformers Movies
2018’s Bumblebee movie is confirmed to be one of the 14 Transformers movies Michael Bay teased were in development after the writers room. The film was pushed into development after Christina Hodson delivered a great script centered around Bumblebee as the only Autobot and a teenage girl. Bumblebee ultimately landed Travis Knight as its director and cast Hailee Steinfeld as the female lead, with John Cena playing the main human antagonist. While the film might have been originally conceived as a prequel to Michael Bay’s Transformers movies, the film effectively rebooted the timeline by changing when the Autobots came to Earth.
9 An R-Rated Bumblebee Movie
Before Bumblebee was officially announced, Michael Bay revealed that an R-rated movie starring the popular Autobot was also in development. He confirmed as much in an interview with Collider in 2016. Bay revealed that the R-rated Bumblebee movie was being written by Steven S. DeKnight, who was behind Spartacus, Netflix’s Daredevil, and Pacific Rim: Uprising. The specifics of what an R-rated Bumblebee movie would look like were never revealed, and the film is unlikely to ever be made unless Paramount ultimately decides to take a darker approach to the kid-friendly franchise to appeal to more adults.
8 Transformers: The Last Knight Sequel Focused On Unicron
There were originally plans for Transformers: The Last Knight to get a sequel with Transformers 6. Christina Hodson was reported to be working on the script after Matt Holloway, Art Marcum, and Ken Nolan developed the story. While no story details were ever confirmed for what Transformers 6 was going to look like, a continued focus on Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) was likely. The film might have also originally been envisioned as a place to pay off Transformers: The Last Knight‘s tease that Unicron was awakening. This would have allowed the franchise to better wrap up the stories for Michael Bay’s characters and set up the future.
7 Transformers 7, 8, and 9 To Adapt Beast Wars
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is known to be the start of a new trilogy for Paramount, and they might be repurposing ideas developed years ago. Paramount had previously announced that Matt Holloway, Art Marcum, and Ken Nolan had developed the story for both Transformers 7 and 8, which were meant to release in 2021 and 2023. While Transformers: Rise of the Beasts does not credit any of the previous writers, it would not be surprising if the original plans for a new Transformers trilogy included adapting Beast Wars. With Transformers 8 and 9 confirmed to happen now, a Beast Wars trilogy appears to be happening after all.
6 Transformers One Tells Optimus Prime & Megatron’s Origins
Transformers One is another upcoming Transformers movie confirmed to be one of the 14 films Michael Bay teased. The animated film following a young Optimus Prime and young Megatron that explores their relationship comes from a script that Ant-Man duo Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari began working on in the Transformers writers room. It has since been rewritten and tweaked by Knock at the Cabin duo Steve Desmond and Michael Sherman, with Toy Story 4‘s Josh Cooley directing. The film is set for a 2024 release date and stars Chris Hemsworth as Optimus Prime, Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron, and Scarlett Johansson as Elita.
5 Optimus Prime Solo Movie Trilogy
It is likely that the 14 Transformers movies Michael Bay promised also included a solo trilogy for Optimus Prime. The leader of the Autobots has been the focal point of the majority of the Transformers films so far, but there are still plenty of adventures worth telling with Optimus as the lead character. This could include other prequels based around Optimus’ adventures on Earth or explore what he was up to between the fall of Cybertron and coming to aid humanity. Considering how recognizable he is to audiences around the world, an Optimus Prime trilogy of movies, possibly even called Transformers: Prime, would make sense.
4 War For Cybertron Movie
Speaking of Cybertron, Bumblebee showed a glimpse of the potential for a Transformers movie focused on the War for Cybertron. The introduction sequence that depicted the Autobots and Decepticons fighting on Cybertron has the potential to be explored in greater depth. Whether this would be told in a CGI live-action setting with the G1 designs or be better suited as an animated followup to Transformers One is unknown. But, either option would give the Transformers movie franchise a completely different type of movie than what audiences have got before, one taking place entirely off Earth and with no human characters.
3 Dinobots Spinoff Movie
Michael Bay’s Transformers movie future tease might have also included a Dinobots spinoff movie. Transformers: Age of Extinction brought Grimlock, Slug, Strafe, and Scorn into the live-action franchise, and they briefly returned in Transformers: The Last Knight. However, the Dinobots characters have still not been given their full due on the big screen and a proper major role. The potential for a Transformers movie featuring the dinosaur-themed characters is great. A Dinobots movie would be able to further explore their origins and show some of their adventures on Earth, as well as better establish the characters’ personalities.
2 A Transformers Movie Set In Ancient Rome
Another possible Transformers movie that might have been part of the plan is one set in ancient Rome. Franchise producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura teased such a film while speaking to Collider in 2016. He suggested that putting the Transformers in ancient Rome would be a fascinating backdrop to explore, but it was never reported if such a film was actually put into development. Considering Transformers: The Last Knight teased how the Transformers had roles in Arthurian times and World War II, having them play a role in either the rise or fall of the Roman Empire would be another way to retroactively add them into human history.
1 Transformers: Rescue Bots
Based on what is known about the 14 Transformers movies developed with Michael Bay, predicting a live-action or animated Transformers: Rescue Bots movie might also fit. The writers room developed everything from direct sequels to Bay’s films, prequels, and spinoffs for everyone to enjoy, as well as an R-rated film geared for adults. Rescue Bots could be an opportunity to appeal more directly to children. The Rescue Bots help humanity with various disasters and shine a spotlight on doctors, law enforcement, and other first responders. That could be something Paramount would be interested in having in the Transformers movies.
Key Release Dates
-
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
