Autobots, roll out!
Paramount Pictures has released the first trailer for “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts,” the seventh installment of the Hasbro film franchise set to release June 9, 2023. The latest movie introduces the animal-themed Maximals, Predacons and Terrorcons.
Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback star in the upcoming action film from director Steven Caple Jr., who previously directed “Creed II.” Ramos plays Noah, an ex-military electronics expert who lives with and supports his family in Brooklyn, while Fishback plays Elena, an artifact researcher at a museum. Peter Cullen, who has lent his voice to Autobots leader Optimus Prime throughout the franchise’s run, will reprise his role as the film centers on Optimus in 1990s Brooklyn and is inspired by the franchise’s “Beast Wars” storyline.
The trailer introduces Optimus Primal, the leader of the Maximals who’s voiced by Ron Perlman and can transform into a gorilla. The two Optimuses meet, and Primal warns Prime of a brand new threat to their world. “Let them come,” Optimus Prime says, over footage of a heavy-metal battle pitting robots against robots. Additional cast members include Pete Davidson as Mirage, an Autobat who can transform into a Porsche; Sebastian Maniscalco as Wheeljack, who can become a Volkswagen bus; Michelle Yeoh as Airazor, a Maximal who can turn into a falcon; and Grey Griffin as Arcee, an Autobot who can transform into a Ducati 916 motorcycle. The movie also features the appropriately named Rhinox and Cheetor, plus the Terrorcons Scourge, Nightbird and Battletrap.
“Rise of the Beasts” is a follow-up to 2018’s “Bumblebee,” which starred Hailee Steinfeld and John Cena. That prequel film, centered on the lovable yellow Autobot, served as a reboot for the “Transformers” franchise, whose five previous movies were helmed by director Michael Bay. Following the success of “Bumblebee,” producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura noted that the franchise would undergo a change in tone and style to help separate them from the first five Bay films. “Rise of the Beasts” also serves as the first of a planned trilogy, with two more sequels in early development.
Check out the trailer below.