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from: Yahoo! movies
Release Date: November 17th, 2006 (wide)
Release Date Notes: (9/17/03) Somewhat ironically, this movie may actually be released in 2005. What's ironic about 2005? Well, the 1986 animated Transformers movie, which took the characters into the future, was set in 2005. This movie, however, will not follow that storyline (click and scroll for spoiler: in which most of the "first generation" of Transformers got obliterated early on), but will start the mythology of the "Generation 1" characters over from scratch for the big screen. (3/17/05) The fans would have loved a 2005 release, but 2006 is pretty close. Rather than aiming for a summer release, though, DreamWorks is aiming for the Thanksgiving season with November 17th, 2006.
Distributor: DreamWorks Pictures
Production Company: Angry Films (Spawn 2, Iron Man, Astro Boy)
Cast: None announced yet.
Director: Not announced yet.
Director Notes: (9/17/03) Back in July, producer Don Murphy told Comics2Film that three of the directors that had expressed interest in working on this project were Armageddon), Joseph Kahn (Torque), Robert Zemeckis (the Back to the Future trilogy, The Polar Express) and Michael Bay (Bad Boys II, though soon after, IGN FilmForce ran a story claiming Michael Bay was no longer in the running. Personally, I am rooting for Robert Zemeckis. *That* would be something. (4/11/04) Well, what do you know... a director rumor appeared online recently, and the name in question was none other than Robert Zemeckis. Of course, in the three weeks since, there has been no confirmation of it, but there it is. (6/1/04) A while back, IGN Film Force confirmed that the Zemeckis rumor was inaccurate.
Music Note: (9/17/03) I am *so* hoping the producers do the right thing and make sure that "The Touch," the wonderfully overwrought 1980s-power-ballad from The Transformers: The Movie (which Dirk Diggler also covered in Boogie Nights), somehow gets in this movie, even if it's just as a few instrumental notes.
Screenwriter: John Rogers (cowriter of Catwoman, The Core); rewrite by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman (writing team of The Legend of Zorro; cowriters of The Island)
Based Upon: (9/17/03) This live-action movie will be based upon the popular line of robot toys produced by Hasbro since the early 1980s that "transform" from recognizable machines or animals into giant robots. The toys have previously been adapted to television as a few different TV series (with the original 1984-1987 series being the most popular) and as an excellent animated feature film in 1986, featuring the voice of Orson Welles in one of his last performances. This film is most definitely considered to be the first in a potential series of live-action Transformers movies. Specifically, the characters in this movie will be based upon the original 1984 line-up, although there may be a few later Transformers added, if they serve the story.
Premise: Whereas the Earth is the home of a variety of organic-based lifeforms, the planet of Cybertron is the homeworld of a race of robots which have the ability to transform into other mechanisms, with each Transformer having its own unique disguise. The Transformers are divided into two separate camps: the good and just Autobots, who are led by Optimus Prime (whose disguise is a red 18-wheel semi truck); and the evil Decepticons, who are led by Megatron (who transforms into a gun; there's a good deal of size-shifting involved with Megatron as well). With fuel supplies (called Energon Cubes) on Cybertron running low, both forces travel through space looking for a new source, which leads them to Earth, which from their perspective in rich in the minerals and chemicals they need. Disguising themselves as cars, airplanes, boats, etc. easily recognizable to humans, the Transformers engage in a secret war for control of Earth's bountiful natural resources...
Filming: (9/17/03) There is currently no production start date for this project. Given the amount of CGI work that will be necessary (in addition to ambitious "practical" effects), this movie will probably take at least 18 months to produce from start to finish. Reportedly, the Transformers will be (mostly) practical, physical effects/props on the set, embellished by or replaced by CGI in sequences where practical effects aren't... practical. (3/17/05) Production is expected to start sometime later this year.
Genre: Action, Eye Candy, Kids, Science Fiction
Sites about the Subject: Yahoo! Directory (whether it be the toys, the animated shows, the comic books, the animated movie... there's a site somewhere out there for it)
Unofficial Rumor Control: IGN FilmForce
Official Franchise Site: Transformers.com (note: this is the official site for the contemporary "Transformers Armada" which will *not* be the storyline adapted in this film, although some of the Armada characters are from Generation 1, many are not)
Official Producer Message Board: DonMurphy.net
Watch an Unofficial Video Clip: The Michael Smith Homepage (although it's completely unaffiliated with this production, Smith's VW transformation clip gives you a great visual idea of what this movie might look like; look for it under June 17th, 2003)
Message Board: Share your thoughts on our "Transformers" Message Board
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