The giant robots are back! “Transformers: The Beginning” has just revealed its first explosive images! The cinema release is scheduled for October 23, 2024.
It was from space that the trailer for Transformers: The Beginning was launched! This is the first time that such an event around a trailer has been organized, with the Paramount studio at the helm.
From a spacecraft 40 kilometers above Earth, the trailer was revealed; it was preceded by a personalized introductory video from Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry, dubbing voices of the main characters.
The first lends his voice to the hero of the franchise, Optimus Prime. As for the second, he vocally interprets his enemy, Megatron. Note that Scarlett Johansson doubles Elita and Bumblebee is played by Keegan-Michael Key.
The Beginning, expected in theaters on October 23, 2024, will be the first Transformers animated film since the 1986 original. The plot will take place entirely on Cybertron; it will tell the story of how two brothers in arms, Optimus Prime and Megatron, became sworn enemies, leading to the greatest fight between the Autobots and the Decepticons.
After Rise of the Beasts, released in theaters in June 2023, the Transformers saga continues this year with The Beginning, directed by Josh Cooley. The latter had previously directed Toy Story 4.
On the occasion of the launch of the trailer, AlloCiné was able to speak exclusively with the director, who spoke with us about his approach to this work.
What inspired you to embark on this adventure and what can we expect from Transformers The Beginning?
What really excited me is that this is an origin story for these characters that people know and love, Optimus Prime and Megatron. What also appealed to me was the fact that it was a story we’ve never told before.
The plot takes place before Earth even existed in this world, millions of years before that. The whole story takes place on Cybertron, with robots, and follows the relationship between these two brothers who become sworn enemies; This really excited me.
What also appealed to me was the fact that it was a story we’ve never told before.
It seemed like a totally new and fresh approach to the franchise to me and it’s something that can only be done in animation. I was keen from the start for this film to be made in animation. Note that there are no links with the previous films in live action, except that they are the same characters.
Why did you choose animation?
This is an epic film and the world is huge. We’ve never seen Cybertron like this before. Everything is in computer graphics. It’s a planet made entirely of metal. The characters are all made of metal and the world is gigantic. In live action movies, robots are so huge compared to humans.
Without the humans in the film, there is no comparison. We went in the opposite direction, which is to say we compared the world to the Transformers scale. We went the other way, so the planet is just huge, its scale is huge, and the spaceships are huge. Everything looks epic.
What fascinates you about Transformers?
I’ve always been a fan since the 1980s. I grew up watching the original cartoon and reading the comics. There’s something about the mythology of good versus evil that I think speaks to everyone. This mythological side is something that I absolutely wanted to keep in this story.
These characters are based on the Greek gods, so they are gigantic. Everything is huge. That said, this movie has all the action and adventure that people know from Transformers, but it’s really about the relationship between these two brothers who become enemies. That’s the thing that I really leaned on throughout the making of the film.
Do you think there are parallels between their world and ours?
Absolutely. Yes, it’s true. It was important that we do that for this film. In fact, I would say that was one of the challenges. I really wanted to make sure that this film was a good analogy for our world. When audiences see the feature film, they won’t feel like they’re in a futuristic city on another planet.
It really feels like it’s similar to our world and that it’s livable. So there are real issues for the film. All Transformers fight for their world and for the safety of their planet. This planet had to be something worth saving. I wanted the audience to want to be there.
Who is the character you identify with the most? Which one do you prefer and why?
Optimus Prime is an easy answer because he is a noble and formidable character. But what I wanted for this film was to not portray Megatron as a villain. I feel like it’s easy to do because in everything we’ve known, he’s just a bad guy.
It was important to me that the audience really understand where Megatron is coming from as a character, so that you understand why he acts the way he does, and you can really feel the way their relationship is falling apart. For this film, I felt that both were equally important.
Was there any specific challenge you faced when making this film in terms of animation, what was the biggest difficulty you had to overcome?
I think one of the biggest questions we had from the start was what tone was this film going to take. We wanted to do something accessible to everyone. It’s not just for kids, nor for adults, it’s for everyone, while remaining in the family of the franchise and in the spirit of a Transformers film.
When it came to the animation, we wanted the look to not be completely photorealistic, but to be completely believable. It feels like you can touch things, while still feeling like an illustration or feeling similar to the one you get when watching the original cartoon. It was important to me, just to bring back a little nostalgia.
Furthermore, the franchise will not stop there! As part of the CinemaCon event in Las Vegas: Paramount has confirmed the start of a cross-over between the GI Joe and Transformers franchises! This information was announced at the end of Rise of the Beasts, in which the hero, Noah Diaz, was offered a position within the GI Joe team.
This 7th opus of Transformers therefore had a major surprise in store for us: Paramount’s intention to combine the two huge Hasbro toy licenses, that of giant robots and that of GI Joe. The studio made the news official during CinemaCon, without giving further details on the project.
We just know that Steven Spielberg will be executive producer and that Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Michael Bay will be among the producers of the cross-over. Will Noah Diaz become the hero of the next GI Joe film?
Will the super-soldiers be called upon to lend a hand to the Autobots in the continuation of their war against the Decepticons during an explosive collaboration? Both ? The mystery is, today, total. In the meantime, Transformers: The Beginning will hit theaters on October 23, 2024.