‘Transformers: A New Generation’ Is Not the Title of New Animated Film

The Transformers franchise is finally returning to the big screen with Rise of the Beasts coming later this year, but fans of the original series also have their eyes toward 2024 when the Autobots and Decepticons will hit theaters in their animated forms once again. Little has been divulged about the untitled film, which will mark the first animated feature from the franchise since 1986’s The Transformers: The Movie, but one thing producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura can assure is that it’s not the highly-speculated Transformers: A New Generation. Speaking to Collider’s Steve Weintraub, he gave insight into what to expect from the film and where the team is on a title.

Before diving into specifics about the film, di Bonaventura quickly debunked the title rumors. “That is not the title. We haven’t firmly decided,” he said. “We are going to announce it shortly, I’m not allowed to divulge, but that’s not the correct title.” In the context of the plot details, such a title doesn’t make a ton of sense. According to di Bonaventura, the new Transformers film follows the backstory of Optimus Prime and Megatron, the respective leaders of the Autobots and Decepticons. The two used to be close friends when fighting together on their home planet of Cybertron. The film will track how that relationship slowly crumbles and how their rift eventually gives way to the larger Transformers universe as fans know it.

Rather than showing A New Generation, this will all be about the old generation on Cybertron, showing the world that Optimus and Megatron grew up in. It’s a deeper look at a tumultuous time in Cybertronian society where the two eventual leaders are finding their respective voices. di Bonaventura emphasizes that this isn’t a coming-of-age story, but it does hit at the core of who these iconic characters are and how their world shaped their respective viewpoints. Given how massive the concept is, di Bonaventura added that it would be natural to explore these origins across multiple films, saying:

“We’re hoping that there is enough emotional construct to that, that would lead to a trilogy of it because, personally, I think there’s a natural trilogy. I’m not always looking to do multiple movies, but there’s a natural trilogy around their relationship. So, you’re going to see Cybertron in a way you’ve never seen it, that no one’s ever seen it before. Because we’re doing an animation, we’re allowed to really go all out. If you tried to make this live-action, it would probably be a billion-dollar movie or something.”

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Who Is Behind the New Animated Transformers Movie?

When asked about the animation itself, di Bonaventura was over the moon with the progress made so far. “Having seen probably four shots from it, you’ve never seen anything like it, I’ll say it that way,” he added. “For sure, you’ll go, “Oh my God, it’s a whole thing.” I’m not sure if I’m supposed to divulge it, but I’m going to.” He also revealed that the film is in the hands of Industrial Light and Magic, a studio better known nowadays for its groundbreaking VFX work using the Volume. They have some animation shops, however, scoring an Oscar for their work on Rango and contributing to WALL-E.

One reason di Bonaventura thinks ILM is perfect for the job is that he feels they’ll be able to do the planet of Cybertron justice in their unique style showcased in Rango. He explains:

“You know, I think one of the difficulties in the past, for instance, in rendering Cybertron is, if you have to try to create the whole planet, it gets really expensive. So when you look at the intro in the beginning of Bumblebee, or in [Michael Bay’s] movies, we have different versions of it. This thing has to be a living, breathing environment, and so we have to create an environment that is unique to Cybertron, and given the history of Primus and all the things that go behind it, we’re allowed to inhabit, if you would, the planet in a way you couldn’t do it in live-action. Thankfully, ILM is a great partner in that.”

The new Transformers animated film is set to release on July 19, 2024. In the meantime, check out the trailer for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which comes out on June 9, 2023, below.