Thursday, June 21, 2012

Bay Talks TF4: New Cast, Not a Reboot, Transformers in Space?

In an interview with Hero Complex to promote Transformers: The Ride, Michael Bay discussed some of the preliminary plans he is considering for Transformers 4 now that principle photography of Pain and Gain is complete. Bay said there will be a new cast, the story will not be a reboot but a "new direction", wants to avoid going to sci-fi but might take events to space and needs to sculpt a script that will reduce the budget by $30 million (so close to first movie's $150 budget).

It is unclear if by new cast he means just humans or also the Transformer characters (and thus the voice actors). The "new direction" means the "history" of the previous films will remain intact and possibly inform on events in the fourth movie. As I have said before, there is little reason there could not have been more than one NEST team defeating Decepticon threats not lead by Megatron. The budget cut seem significant but I wouldn't be surprised if half of that is recouped by hiring the new cheaper cast. The other half can be saved with careful use of special effects. Considering how Bay's on location shoots tend to be large in scale, the cost of space green screen sequences vs. on location shooting is about a wash in budget savings so that will be dictated more by story needs. Bay and writer Ehren Krueger still have at least six or so months to hammer out the first draft needed to get pre-production going so any or all these ideas could change. Below are the relevant segments, the full article can be found here.
“It’s kind of daunting and scary — you want to try to keep it going, to match what’s come before,” Bay said with a rare flash of self-doubt, or something close to it. ”We’ve accomplished a lot [with the first three films] but that doesn’t mean you get anything handed to you or that you’ve got everything figured out.”

“It’s a new cast,” Bay said with a matter-of-fact tone. “We’ve moving on to something different.”

“It’s not a reboot, that’s maybe the wrong word,” Bay said. “I don’t want to say reboot because then people will think we’re doing a Spider-Man and starting from the beginning. We’re not. We’re taking the story that you’ve seen — the story we’ve told in three movies already — and we’re taking it in a new direction. But we’re leaving those three as the history. It all still counts. I met with the writer before I went off to do ‘Pain and Gain’ and we talked about a bunch of ideas. We let that simmer for a bit. He’s been thinking about stuff and now we’re getting back together next week to see what we’ve got and to see if it gels.”

Could the new story involve a departure from Earth? “I think so, yeah, a little,” Bay said. “That feels like the way to go, doesn’t it? I want to go a little off but I don’t want to go too sci-fi. I still want to keep it grounded.That’s what works in these movies, that’s what makes it accessible.”

“[The budget's] going to be less, actually,” Bay said. “Our mandate is to cut about $30 million.”

“Here’s the thing, it’s tough to find someone who’s done these kind of movies and to have the complication of creating the new stuff that needs to be in this movie – not just characters but a new type of action, I hope – and that’s a lot for someone new to bite off. And so after this one I will leave it in the best hands possible. That’s the plan.”

64 comments:

  1. Galvatron & Unicron or Cybertron?

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  2. Sounds like the idiot finally doesn't know what he's doing.

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    1. Finally? He hasn't known what he's doing for the last two movies.

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  3. I dont get it,so the movies gonna take place in space? And what does he mean by not going too sci-fi, I mean, I understand why he's dropping 30 mil,because were on a tight budget,and a low economy,and what does he mean by "new cast", is he replacing everyone,including the voice actors?the bottom line is, I currently don't understand bay.

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    1. Think of it like this...maybe there is now a SECOND team of autobots.....a SECOND team of human soldiers...fighting the secret battles that continue with deceptions around the globe....a more deeper take on the autobot story...give them more feel and emotion.....taking the fight to space isnt that bad of an idea......we'll just have to see how it goes.....heck maybe have an all out battle on the dead remains of cybertron or something.

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    2. Hey man just to tell you that I agree with you. People need to just relax and dont get all bent up. I can remember the first TF G1 movie in the 80's which took humans to space as well. There are still more transformers to go yet. I for one think that Bay will stick to what the people grew up on and felt when they were young and even older and not forget that. He will take into consideration of everyones opinions. Just have a little more faith in the guy. He hasnt let us down yet even in some of the most difficult times they had in the produtions. I cant wait till TF4 hits the list.

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    3. the story has of autobot s and deceptions the good and bad boy named profesor jackson the boos of the kurz is old and with deception all movie series.

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  4. How can he not go too scifi if the tranformers are scifi

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  5. sounds like hes going with rodimus an his team of autobots and I think its the proper way too go

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  6. Michael Bay confused plot ideas.. obviously they have no clue what to do next but they will mix up some messed up plot just to get another huge fat check as long as people will keep paying for bad movies like Transformers3.
    And now they are even reducing the official movie budget. So this is going to be way worse than Transformers3.
    In space with lower budget means ILM won't be allowed to do anything better than previous movies limited by money when in fact they should work with a larger budget to deliver better and new CGI models.
    Michael Bay really doesn't care about the franchise anymore. Just like he directed Transformers3 just for the money.

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    1. Michael Bay is very tight on his budget and makes sure they don't go over. The only exception was ROTF when he personally gave ILM money to hire more artists to get the film done in time. And besides, look at films like Iron Sky. They had an INCREDIBLY low budget, and yet they produced decent-quality visual effects. I'm actually excited to see what's in store for Transformers.

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    2. Joss Whedon once said, "It's good to shoot on a lower budget. That way, you have to use more creativity."

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    3. Ultra Magnus!!

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  7. michael bay is an ancient cybertronian language which means expolsions

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  8. Yeah but at the same time he's trying to match the 1st films budget and in my opinion that was the best of the three. It had better death matches,incredible CGI I think the best of all three, Megs was truly awesome and powerfull, the Blackout seen was one of the best openings ever. Transformers1 worked excellent so a giant bloated budget doesn't meen a better movie but I also agree that Bay must change his approach like get rid of all that dumb goofy doofy toilet humor that takes up half the movie and focus more on the Transformers themselves and more 1 on 1 death matches and people will be hanging from the rafters with excitement. Bay needs to go back to basics.

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  9. I think what he means by less sci-fi is he's not going to do an all out war on Cybertron or have it all in space he's going to keep it grounded, in otherwords mostly on Earth, I'm pretty sure thats what he was saying.

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  10. @Anonymous 6/22/2012 6:08 AM: no way. The first movie due to limited budget had most of planned action scenes heavily cut. They planned a very long chase scene on the highway like Matrix Reloaded but they had to cut it due to limited budget.
    With Transformers2 they managed delivering the most advanced action scenes with the best CGI by ILM for the franchise. The forest battle alone is so big and long that it's beyond anything on the other two movies. Plot wise it had issues and it was less polished than the first movie but action scenes and CGI wise the second movie is still the best one.
    Transformers3 they didn't care at all, they just re-used CGI models with some tweaks and that's it. The action scenes looked pretty basic and boring as well as pointless. Fights sequences on Transformers3 are so short that it's just silly after the long outstanding ones on the second movie.

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  11. I could care less about the movie's budget. Of the three movies the one with the smallest budget was the best, the largest budgeted movie was the worst.
    With most states and many foreign countries offering heavy financial incentives to studios big movies can be shot on location for less than ever.
    Also, don't forget this movie will not spend as much on its human cast as did DOTM...Shia Labeouf was paid 10 million dollars for the 3rd movie.

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  12. idk guys something about how Bay wants the movie to go sounds a little weird… thats just me…

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  13. Its time for Bay to step down out of the three the first was good but still all three did suck in the same direction focuses too much on the humans especially on the super model girlfriend. I put my hopes up that each will be different and better but still getting the same results. So its time for Bay to step down. Three strikes and your OUT Bay.

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    1. Tf2 sucked,the first half was good,but then the second half was so bad it won the movie several razzies.

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    2. Transformers2 is a very good movie that they didn't have time to polish script and plot wise but action scenes and CGI are top-notch.
      Transformers3 plot idea was cool BUT the execution was just plain awful. And action scenes and CGI are barely average at best, with short fights and nothing new visually happening. It's a bad version of the first movie pretending to look dark and better while it's just plain boring and cheap, they spent a lot less than on the first movie despite the fake claimed higher budget.

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  14. mtv news added alittle more info saying that optimus prime and bumblebee will be in the movie, plus some more familiar transformers..the new cast is all new human actors, no one from the last 3 will be in the 4th.

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    1. interesting... kind of makes sense if the movie is in a future prespective (maybe 10 years after the end of the 3rd movie)

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    2. Tyree might be back.

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  15. hmmn maybe the remnants of the Decepticon forces rally behind a new leader, Galvatron?

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  16. maybe the movie is set in the future, the past 3 movies laying the foundation for this new movie. Optimus is only shown as a flashback as the autobot team of the future led by Rodimus Prime fights against a new threat to earth.

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    1. NO! Look we have learned before that in most cases Optimus Prime is needed....Rodimus is awesome dont get me wrong...but I'd rather have a SECOND prime be around...while Optimus lead the original team, Rodimus leads another team, and they both do missions for NEST.....I just dont like it when Optimus is OUT of the picture....

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    2. @ Anon 6:22 PM
      There can only be one Prime, as a true Prime must have the Matrix. The only exception was Sentinel in TF3 who was basically lost for many, many years, and he turned out to be corrupted.

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  17. Are the weapons going tobe held just like in tf3,or will they be embedded just like in tf1 and tf2

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  18. Actually in TF2 Optimuses guns were sort of held....

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  19. The same person keeps saying the same thing over and over and over and over, that all the movies sucked but ROTF, good greif one flew over the koo koo's nest. I like the idea of moving to the future, I think he has to because he says he wants to maintain the history of the other movies so maybe with a new cast it moves into a different era. Only time will tell and I'll be right here waiting but please, please, please no Rodimus, I couldn't stand the G1 Rodimus he had absolutely nothing for the mighty Optimus, he was a wannabee to what Optimus is. I personaly couldn't imagine a movie without Optimus, I mean many have tried to reach the status of Optimus but have always fell short and Optimus is clearly the worlds most favorite Transformer, why screw that up, he's the ultimate leader you just cant get any better and you cant go rong with Megs either but he was beheaded, that shit kills me that should not have happened. They should have sent him away,exciled him or somthing. I dont know I'm torn up about that.

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  20. Maybe we should all just bite our tounges until more information is reveiled... Frankly talking in 'if' and 'when' doesnt seem to be getting us any closer to finding out what Bay is going to do in this movie.

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  21. It will be good as long as they keep Peter Cullen. They will add additional Autobots, but they will also need to add an entirely new Decepticon army because all the main Decepticons were killed off in DOTM; unless the enemy won't be Decepticons...

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  22. The Dark Aredo Rises6/23/2012 3:33 AM

    @ Anonymous 6/22/2012 3:43 PM got his butt hurt when Megan Fox got canned. He has been cutting and pasting the same negative comments since May of 2010.

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  23. Dont worry spark before you know it all will be quiet again until more tidbits come out but I still like hearing everyone's opinion on what we would like to see done differently this time around. I personaly would like to see alot more 1 on 1 death matches kinda like the match between Bee and Baracade and Optimus and Bonecrusher on the highway chase and also the seen with Ironhide and sideswipe against the decepticons in DOTM but make them last longer, I want to see real good scraps and alot of them. I would rather see more death matches than seens like the driller or all the mindless exsplosions. Just focus on good death matches and people will happy as hell, ya know what I'm saying , get rid of most of the toilet humor, get rid of mindless exsplosions, take all the time that was spent on the driller and put that time into serious 1on 1 death matches, I mean the driller took a fortune to do and I thought it was cool but I would much rather have more awsome death matches instead and again make it extremely hard to kill any Transformer, like almost impossible.I dont know, thats just a couple of changes Iwould like see but will Bay change his approach, I dont know.

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    1. You just described that you wanted Transformers2 then.

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  24. 1.5 billion dollars on DOTM and he's cutting his budget? Cheap bastard...bring Megan Fox back, she's cheap.

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  25. I just described Transformers2?, ha ha ha ha ha ha I didnt mention one thing about ROTF. Dont get me rong if you like ROTF thats great, there was some good things in ROTF, I did like the seen in the warehouse whem Prime came through the roof and busted shit up and I also liked the Forest fight but yeah anything that has good scraps is what its all about so Iguess it goes back to what I'm praying for alot more violence after all it is Transformers not a movie called a boy and his car and I'd rather see a death match then Simmons hairy ass or thumper dumper or dogs a humpin and balls a hangin or those great quotes from Sam Witwicky, no no no no no no!!! and Mikeala screaming SAM!!! oh those famous quotes.

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    1. Transformers3 didn't have a lot more violence at all.
      And as you pointed out the fight scenes were too quick and boring.
      The drill bot never existed in any Transformers series and it was a waste of resources.
      If they wanted to do a good job they could have had two combiners fighting downtown with people still there, at least it would have been something never seen before and on a much larger scale than the Mission City battle on the first movie.
      The best fight scenes are on Transformers2. There Michael Bay spent a lot of time creating never seen before action scenes, long fights with outstanding visuals and ILM delivered a new quality level with their best renderings and models.
      Transformers3 they just wanted a quick fat check and re-used stuff creating nothing amazing at all.

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    2. The drill bot did exist sort of but it had a different name and form in the first transformers series.

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  26. Here's what I DON'T want: stupid extremely forced sexual jokes, Really hot girlfriend eye candy, Robots with human hair and glasses (what's the point of them being a robot????) continuing from that insanely convoluted plot line where a robot heaven exists... super focus on human cast (mostly on female leads butt), Michael Bay Directing and Ehren Kruger writing(who is writing the new one).

    I DO want: someone else directing, A new continuity where megaton wasn't some lame lackey/always died and where transformers who are not Optimus Prime or Bumblebee (or the female lead) actually get screen time, And most importantly stop relying on the human characters to make the film seem "relatable" because they weren't most of the time... Bay and co. seem to think that because they are giant robots we, as humans won't relate to them, (which is why they gave Optimus a mouth) Which is dumb and has been proven wrong many times over. Anyone remember Wall-E?, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci writing who co-wrote the original and fought Bay against everything he put in the second one but eventually just gave up and left for the third AND who are currently responsible for writing the Emmy award winning transformers prime tv show.

    but this is just my opinion I understand others have theirs, but I'd really like Michael Bay to stop making money off my childhood =)

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  27. Like I said ROTF definately had some good moments but I actualy think the human element made the movie seem so goofy and somewhat perverted but there was some good fight seens. And I couldn't agree more that other Transformers besides Optimus and Bee need more screen time and I'm not crazy about the bots looking more human just take a look at Sentinal he looked just like my grandpa, he looked like an old man in a space suit for crying out loud and Q, that bitch was one fucked up looking transformer I dont know what to make of him and how about those twins ha ha ha ha ha, fucking Bay he is something else.

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  28. hai
    micheal bay. i dont knw u see this. i realy want to see how these transfomers born. really want to c all of those primes.

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  29. Maybe its a prequel? An actual movie detailing the war on Cybertron, loosely based on the pre-movie comics?

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  30. Maybe it's a prequel? An actual movie instead of the pre-movie comics based on Cybertron, detailing the war on Cybertron!?

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  31. First of all, you can't trust anything Mr. bay says. The 3rd was suppose to be his last, bit after DOTM made what it made; he was bought.
    He did good one the 1st movie; it wasn't the transformers many wanted to see, but he still delivered. ROTF was horrible ...eventhough it did have some nice fight scenes. But after the action beats, the audience still want a story.
    DOTM was a slightly better film, but again, all of the tiolet humor...which wasn't remotely funny...especially that bathroom scene in DOTM...ATROCIOUS !!!
    The problem with The transformers movies, were focusing too much on the humans. Period. Transformers:THE MOVIE ( Animated) has more heart and better story than what Bay and company gave us. Even the animated series from the 80s had some great stories and characterizations ( season 1 primarily) I really wish Bay wasn't coming back as a director, because we already know what he can give.
    Like the recently rebooted Spiderman, they should've given this to a whole new creative group. What I would like them to get right however is the design of the robots, and slow down on the transformations so we can at least see what the hell is going on.
    I'm still waiting for a generation 1 movie.

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  32. The TMNT movie that bay would direct was put on hold due to script issues. really? how about the fans hate his alien turtle concept? may thats the issue.

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  33. Oh toys...that's right. Bay says they will be redesigning the bots for Transformers 4; after 3 movies, I guess the current designs have run their course. After all, HASBRO plays a big part in the films. So Bay is back on board to sell some toys. AGHHH !!! Well, after watching the first 3 in the cinema, I definately will be sitting out the 4th one. It'll be on dvd a few months after theather anyways.

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  34. @Anonymous 7/05/2012 9:29 PM: The Amazin Spider-Man is awful and atrocious. Just an unwatchable mess of a movie. It seems an Asylum movie.

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  35. Here is a picture of Override
    [IMG]http://i1193.photobucket.com/albums/aa350/RichRonald/images.jpg[/IMG]

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  36. Why is there a new cast it should just continue on from what happened they should have shia labouf.

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  37. ryan mccloskey8/17/2013 5:45 PM

    It will be shit if there isn't well known characters like
    Knock out ,dredwing,zeta prime ,seekers,predacons,omega supreme,warpath,cup,armourhide,cliffjumper,primus,blurr,breakdown.
    And jetfire died in rotf.
    Can wheeljack show with the same chasis as tfp
    Will starscream be revived .

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  38. not too scifi means that we'll see even more stupid people sequences bad jokes and idiot military characters that have nothing at all to do with transformers, like in the first 3 films, but now, even more so. so where going to have another movie that has nothing at all to do with transformers but we'll get a few seconds of cgi characters, then the credits will role and the movie will be over, again. they should call these movies "bad jokes,dumb army stuff and chevys" instead of "transformers". hey atleast these movies arent called "The Transformers" like real and original was called, so i guess atleast thats ok.

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  39. man the real transformers, most of them were intelligent, smart assed, sturdy, looked sturdy, whooped ass, and couldnt be affected by human weponry.
    instead we get these savage pieces of junk that look like jonny5 on crack and fall apart that we get to see in these movies for less than 10% of the film and then the rest is bad acting corny jokes army dudes doing stuff and oh yeah a random explosion... man that shit has nothing to do with transformers dude.

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  40. well if the budget is cut lets hope it all goes to cgi(transformer stuff), and none of that corny army shit. thats all anyone can hope. and hopefully the transformers dont look like pieces of junk that fall apart and end up falling apart just like they look in these films and what happens in these films. sad sad shit.... character revamp and transformer dialog and action only is what we should be hoping for. unfortunantly, we're not gonna get it.

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  41. why do they gotta make the transformers look like shit and fall apart like shit???

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  42. Bay ,just put some 45 gallons of gazoil in new camaro '14 and put a match .....15 million budget drop .....and put script in a garbage with a match..... another 15 million budget drop...so the movie ,is going in space, and let me spend 15 dollars in office toilet anyway .....for the love of Transformers .....i going twice in the bathroom,,,

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  43. Crooshairs is sexy robot!

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