It’s only a matter of time before the cinematic universe becomes passé, but that’s not stopping all of the studios to try and cash in while they can. Paramount is one of rare studios without an interconnected series of films and they’re trying their best with “Transformers.” When it was first announced that Par would be aiming for a “Transformers Cinematic Universe,” the studio tapped producer/writer Akiva Goldsman to run the writers’ room. Thirteen-some writers were hired to pitch ideas in hopes of turning them into spin-off movies—Steven De Knight of “Daredevil” fame, Zak Penn (“Pacific Rim 2,” the original pre-Whedon ‘Avengers’ draft), Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari (two of the Marvel guns who worked on “Ant-Man”) and “Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman were just a few of the many names enlisted (you can bet this writers’ room cost a fortune).
But Goldsman, who’s been involved in countless genre movies as a producer or writer (“I Am Legend,” “Hancock,” “The Dark Tower,” the Joel Schumacher-helmed “Batman” films and “Transformers 5”) is apparently out.
Slashfilm caught up with him at the recent Television Critics Association and when asked if he was still involved he responded with a terse, “No.” Much like Michael Bay and Mark Wahlberg, it looks like most of the key principals involved in the “Transformers” series are leaving which perhaps doesn’t bode entire well for that still-not-set cinematic universe.
Recently, “Transformers” producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura explained the objective: “The writers room, which was set up by all of us, was set up to explore the mythology more. It was set up for a few different reasons but the biggest thing that happened in it was they expanded the mythology of Transformers in a way that allowed us to go to King Arthur. There’s different areas, like we’ve examined World War II, etc.”
Both of those ideas (WWII, the knights of the round table) ended up in “Transformer: The Last Knight” and Goldman’s comments, plus the “secret mythology” introduced in ‘Transformers 5’ suggests, that Par, Hasbro and the ‘Transformers’ creative team were exploring many genres by going back in the past and set “Tranformers” film in any era they chose. ‘The Last Knight’ also hinted at robot eras set in WWI and during the Samurai epochs in Japan.
To that end, the first and only spin-off film, “Bumblebee” is finally becoming a reality. In the works for some time, “Bumblebee” is going forward. Perhaps most importantly, it’s the exact kind of film we’re discussing: a kind of spin-off prequel set in 1987. Directed by Travis Knight (“Kubo And The Two Strings”), the film stars Hailee Steinfeld (“Edge Of Seventeen”), Pamela Adlon (“Better Things,” “Louie”), John Cena (“Trainwreck”) and many more.
What’s more, Paramount is evidently feeling bold about the movie and have dated in the same weekend as Warner Bros.’ “Aquaman” solo film, on December 18, 2018 — bumping it back from its original summer ’18 bow. But beyond “Bumblebee,” the future of the Transformers cinematic universe is unclear and with Goldsman out, it’s also uncertain what, if any of the ideas generated in the think tank brain storms, will become fully fledged movies. Here’s the official synopsis for “Bumblebee”:
READ MORE: ‘Bumblebee’ Compared To ‘The Iron Giant’
On the run in the year 1987, Bumblebee finds refuge in a junkyard in a small Californian beach town. Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld), on the cusp of turning 18 and trying to find her place in the world, discovers Bumblebee, battle-scarred and broken. When Charlie revives him, she quickly learns this is no ordinary, yellow VW bug.
Will Warner Bros. move their big superhero movie? It seems unlikely, but it should be noted that Paramount will be at a significant disadvantage here: “Transformers: The Last Knight” looks like it will make around 50% less than the previous picture, ‘Age Of Extinction.’ That’s a massive, nearly unheard of sequel to sequel drop. There’s also the chance that the Untitled Han Solo movie, currently set for May 2018, gets bumped which means it would sit inside that third weekend in December that the “Star Wars” films have occupied thus far.
Goldsman is indeed not listed in the credits of the “Bumblebee” movie, not even as far-removed executive producer. The people involved beyond the writer, Christina Hodson (“Unforgettable”) include veterans Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Michael Bay, along with executive producers Steven Spielberg, Brian Goldner and Mark Vahradian. One has to wonder what happened in that expensive writers’ room and what led to Goldman’s exit.