It’s been a busy week for the Transformers franchise. The Michael Bay CGI fest pulled in a record-setting holiday weekend haul, then mid-week we got the highly unlikely yet fun to trash rumor that Jason Statham would take over for Shia LaBeouf in the series. So it seems almost apropos that we close out the week with another nugget of Transformers news, this time straight from producer Don Murphy’s mouth. Well, his message board, at least.
The producer commented on the future of the franchise saying, “What happens next? Certainly not a reboot. We haven’t lost the Transformers. They didn’t grow up and become expensive like Toby Maguire [sic] I don’t know what happens next. I’m pretty sure there will be a second trilogy. I’m pretty sure it will kick ass. And I am pretty sure some of you will hate it because it wasn’t all bots.”
Aside from the random dig at Tobey Maguire, Murphy certainly seems to be responding to two things in particular – the question of whether there will be any more Transformers movies and the reaction from critics and movie patrons, despite the $500 million worldwide haul in eight days.
Another trilogy seems ambitious and there are certainly plenty of questions to address before we even get to a fourth movie. Can LaBeouf be coaxed back for another turn in the franchise? Will Rosie Huntington-Whiteley be back? If neither one of them return, who can fill their roles? And then of course there’s the issue of who’s directing. Michael Bay looks to be dead-set on bringing his low-budget crime drama Pain & Gain to the big screen, so who could step in to fill his role? Would Steven Spielberg, who has served as executive producer on the franchise up to now, be interested in taking a shot?
So many questions to answer before we see Optimus Prime and crew back in theaters again. What do you think, Transformers fans? Sound off below with your thoughts on the above questions.
