“Transformers 7” Axed, “Bumblebee” Still to Come

It looks like Paramount won’t be releasing Transformers 7 on June 28, 2019 after all.

The first of the series, Michael Bay’s Transformers (2007) was worth the price of admission just to see Prime transform in real life (okay, it was CGI, but daaaaaang). There followed Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Transformers: Dark of the Moon‘ (2011), Transformers Age of Extinction (2014), and Transformers The Last Knight (2017).

While these first five installments of the series have made a combined worldwide box office of $4.4 billion US, The Last Knight had the lowest take — at $605 million worldwide, it brought in roughly half of what the top grosser, Dark of the Moon, did. Perhaps Paramount feels the boys from Cybertron have had their day, since they seem more interested in releasing comedies over the next year (four of them announced so far).

The sixth of the series, Bumblebee the Movie (2018), is still to come, with Travis Knight taking over directing duties from Michael Bay, although Bay has stayed on, stepping into the producer role. Bumblebee was originally to be released next month, but the studio has pushed it back to December 21. This prequel seems to be in an alternate universe return to 1987, just after the first (animated) movie, in which a fugitive Bumblebee (in his original Volkswagen Beetle transform) hides out in a California beach town junk yard and is discovered and befriended by teenager Charlie Watson (played by Hailee Steinfeld). It looks to be a “girl and her robot” coming of age flick, which could be fantastic, if done right.

It should be noted that Transformers 7 isn’t necessarily dead, it’s just that it no longer has a date in Paramount’s release schedule. It remains to be seen what the future of the franchise will be, although it likely hangs upon how well Bumblebee anchors the foray into prequels. Mark Ryan, who had been voicing Bumblebee in every Transformers film up to now, is not returning for the role (the new voice of Bumblebee hasn’t been announced, but it might be Martin Short). At least it can be happily reported that Peter Cullen is still voicing Optimus Prime.

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Ellen McMicking