Predacons Rising Premiering on The Hub

Hasbro's The Hub network has announced they will air Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Predacons Rising movie (and epilogue to the series) on Friday October 4th at 8pm EST with an encore at 10:30pm EST. The DVD and Blu-ray release of the movie is set for the following Tuesday on October 8th with the season 3 set out on December 3rd. Press release below.

Transformers 4 Filming Continues at Chicago's Uptown Theatre (Updated)

After last weekend its been a bit quiet on the Transformers 4 news front. My guess is they started filming on private property so that allowed them to circle the wagons more effectively and keep the public away. However, that did change just a touch when production moved to Broadway Avenue on Wednesday and Thursday to film at the old style movie palace called the Uptown Theatre. No clue what was filmed at the landmark but Mark Wahlberg and TJ Miller were spotted at the location so a continuation of the early chase sequences in the film and not part of any China related action. A gallery of images can be found at Seibertron.com. Related is a compilation video from Chicago Tribune's Luis Gomez of last weekends filming. Also added an image of a new TF4 hat with claw marks spotted on a crew member, a likely reference to the Dinobots.

Update: It turns out that TF4 production "weekend" is Monday and Tuesday so that is why no filming on those two days. Also Gomez has posted an article about the filming. He noted that the interior of the theatre had a sign for "SXSW Music Fest Jun 8, 2002", the "Star of Texas Liquor & Wine" fake store front, and "Crew Bar & Grill" decorated with Texas state flag indicates that the settings is for theatre in Austin, Texas where the annual South By Southwest festival is held. Also, as indicated by a previous letter, there is a good chance that filming will return to Lake Shore East area on Saturday and Sunday.

Transformers 4 Dinobot Theme for Toys R Us?

A memo from Toys R Us suggests that Hasbro has already worked out one of the ways they will promote their Transformers 4 toy line. No details except the line "Transformers 4- June 2014 Dinobots theme + 2 more movies planned." The use of the plural means there will be more than one Dinobot at least. Which ones remains a mystery.

Transformers Prime Season 3 Home Video Release Date

Amazon has posted their pre-order pages for Transformers: Prime on DVD or Blu-ray. The listed date is December 3, 2013. No details yet so unknown if the set will include Predacons Rising or not but my assumption (based on prices) is not so expect the final 13 episodes of the series with a few extra features.

China's Transformers 4 Talent Search Announces Winners

As part of the co-production agreement with China, Transformers 4 producers participated in a reality show called "Transformers 4 Chinese Actors Talent Search Reality Show" to find four additional actors to appear in the movie. The show has now ended its run and the winners have been announced as (l-r) Austin Lin (as a computer geek), Teresa Daley (as Loli), Bryon Li (as a Kung Fu fighter) , and Candice Zhao (as a "sexy goddess"). The four were chosen from a starting pool of 70,000 applicants. The extent of their roles is unknown but probably just a few lines here and there when scenes are filmed on mainland China sometime in October. (via Seibertron)

More Images, Videos from Transformers 4 in Chicago (Updated)

Transformers 4 finished its first weekend of filming in Chicago and by all appearances it was an exciting one with most of the core cast showing up, explosives set off, the Autobot vehicles on display, and more. Most of the Saturday and Sunday filming involved filming inside of buildings so not as much for the public to see but there are still some photos. The pics show the first time Kelsey Grammer has been seen on a Transformers 4 set.

They also give us a look at the Autobot vehicles, Stanley Tucci, his character's 3 assistants (Melanie Specht, Abigail Klein, and Victoria Summer), Kelsey Grammar, and Mark Wahlberg. To view the full galleries of images from this weekend, click the links below. Also below is a video found by Feris O. of the Autobot vehicles when they were in Detroit. Its a few weeks old but gives you a nice long look at the cars.

Update: Another gallery link has been added along with videos (via Seibertron) below that include an up close look at "Propaganda Wall" on Columbus Drive.
John Leon-Guerrero | Chicago Tribune | Seibertron | Propaganda Wall

More Videos, Propaganda Posters from Transformers 4 In Chicago

Filming continues this weekend in Chicago for Transformers 4. Friday started off with some big bangs with Saturday shifting to coverage of the Autobot vehicles in action. The Chicago Tribune has posted a nice close-up of the same Friday stunts along with a report from the day. The report confirms that current filming is using McCormick Place as a stand-in for Hong Kong. A segment from the video is below but the rest (mostly showing extras running) can be found here (warning it autoplays).

The next three videos are of five Transformers vehicles (Bumblebee, green C7 Corvette Stingray, red Pagani Huayra, blue Bugatti, black Lamborghini Aventador) on the road and on display for the public from Collecticon. Last is the above image of a wall of propaganda posters from TFW2005 that indicates that humanity may be divided on their trust of the Autobots. Some posters show the Chicago skyline with the phrase "Remember Chicago. Report Alien Contact", others are in the 2008 multiple color Obama poster but with the heads of Optimus Prime and Bumblebee with messages of "Hope" or "Hate" and others show robot-like silhouettes with message "It's watching you". Dark of the Moon had something similiar that turned out to play no part in the movie's story so difficult to know if should read to much into it.

Explosive Videos from Transformers 4's First Day in Chicago

It seems that Michael Bay decided to give Chicago a Transformers 4 welcome by setting off an impressive series of explosives on the first day of filming in the city. Filmed at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Square, the purpose of the impressive pyrotechnics is now known if you are ok with reading significant spoiler information. The first video is a great aerial view of most of quick sequence while the second and third provide a more ground level perspective. Videos below, gallery of set images here.

Transformers 4 Call Sheet Reveals Character Names, Story Spoilers

An image of a Transformers 4 call sheet has been posted on Reddit that reveals the first names of most of the key cast, names of several Transformers and story tidbits including confirming a long time rumor. The image is a bit tiny as a screenshot from an iPhone but has enough detail to read the entire call sheet which breaks down which characters, vehicles, and scenes that are being filmed on the day and the days ahead.

Suffice it to say - SPOILER WARNING. Clicking the image or reading summary below are definite spoilers. Thanks to KennyD for the link.

Update: Call sheet image pulled at request of Paramount Pictures publicity and legal departments (which has the unintended side effect of verifying its authenticity).

Official Transformers 4 Images, Chicago Set Pics and Dinobots?

Today started the Chicago leg of principle photography for Transformers 4. To mark the occasion, MichaelBay.com has posted an official staged image that shows some of the cast and crew posing in front of some obelisk. The caption with the photo just identifies the men in the image, "Pictured left to right: Jack Reynor; Mark Wahlberg; 2nd Assistant B-Camera Casey “Walrus” Howard; 1st Assistant B-Camera John Kairis with back to camera; B-camera Operator Lukasz Bielan; Director Michael Bay; and Director of Photography Amir Mokri. High resolution photo: http://bayhem.com/1c0euov"

The Chicago Tribune has posted photos from the TF4 set at The Hyatt Regency McCormick Place that red taxis and other vehicles with Chinese characters that fit a lot of the props from Detroit so it seems that more from the Hong Kong, China setting is being filmed. Last, is a link bait article from Superherohype claiming that today's filming involves the Dinobots. That's it. Absolutely nothing to support the theory so take it with a grain of salt.

Transformers 4 Chicago Aerial Notification Letter

Starting today Transformers 4 will begin filming in Chicago, Illinois starting at The Hyatt Regency McCormick Place and the Lakeshore East area. As prep for the filming a letter was sent out to local businesses and residents notifying of street closures and re-directions. The promised follow-up letter about the helicopter aspect of the filming is below. Basically anywhere the helicopter will be filming low to the ground to get specific shots will be closed off to cars and pedestrian traffic for safety reasons with most of the aerial work occurring early Sunday morning.

Linkfest - Review Catch-Up

With all the Transformers 4 news, got a bit behind on the toy links. Now that we seem to be in a bit of a mini-TF4 news drought (at least until TF4 hits Chicago on Friday), it seems like a good time to play catch-up. Most of the upcoming toys were revealed at cons over the summer but there a lot of cool stuff being planned like a 3rd party version of Nova Prime, not Bruticus and more. Also have a ton of reviews for already released or about to be released toys from Hasbro, Takara and others. Also news from comics, Hasbro and more.

Lego
Nintendo 64 Transformers - Very cool Lego creations that uses Nintendo 64 and is peripherals as alt modes that transform into robots and other objects.
Lego Ratchet and Ironhide - Hit link for fan made Lego creations that actually transform and look remarkably like their Generation One inspired source.

New Sports Car and Spaceship Riding from Transformers 4 Sets

A yellow Saleen S7 was spotted on one of the Transformers 4 sets in the Detroit area. So far we just have the one image so hard to tell if its part of the movie, a background prop or maybe could even just be a rental for a higher up attached to the film.

In addition, below is a video of maybe Mark Wahlberg piloting what looks look like a Cybertronian vehicle similar to those in Dark of the Moon and photographed earlier this month. Again, no clue what is being filmed but the green screen indicates it will be composited in later by ILM into a bigger scene. Thanks to Kenny.D for the links.

Update: Video pulled due to takedown notice by Paramount. Considering the video was taken from a public location, Paramount has no legal claim (otherwise the paparazzi and showbiz shows and sites would be out of business). Sadly the Google bots do not know this and I guess the video poster chose to not contest it.

Transformers 4 Lake Shore East Notification with Filming Info

As posted about earlier, Transformers 4 production will be filming in Chicago starting next Friday. Thanks to @filming_chicago we know have a few more details from a letter that I think was sent to local residents and businesses in the Lake Shore East area. If my memory serves, many of these locations were used in Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Below is based on what I could make out from the notice. I redacted names, email addresses and phone numbers. The main parts is filming will involve a helicopter, vehicular action and pyrotechnics with more filming to occur on August 31 and September 1. Update: Swapped out letter with a clear version, corrected the ? from before.

Dear Building Managers, Businesses and Residents of Lake Shore East,

Paramount Pictures will be filming scenes for the feature film Transformers 4 around the Lakeshore East Neighborhood. We are working closely with the Alderman's office, the Chicago Police Department, and the Chicago Film Office to ensure a smooth and cooperative filming event. Below is a list of neighborhood activity that could affect you.

IDW November 2013 Transformers Comics

IDW Publishing has released their publishing plans for November 2013. Five comics and two trades are coming with the 12 part Dark Cybertron story arc kicking off (whatever that is). For the full details of IDW's other books including GI Joe, Star Trek, Locke & Key, and more click here.

Transformers 4 Production Hitting Chicago Next Week

The Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in Chicago has blogged that Transformers 4 production will be filming in McCormick Place Square starting on Friday, August 23rd. Exactly which characters and TF vehicles are involved is unknown.(via OLV)

Transformers 4 starring Mark Wahlberg is filming in Chicago this summer, and our very own McCormick Place Square is going to be a part of the action! On Friday, August 23rd, McCormick Place Square and parts of S. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. near the hotel will be shut down for filming. The hotel will remain open and fully functional during this time, and guests will have full access to the front drive for parking and drop off.

Now on to the good stuff! McCormick Place Square and parts of King Dr will be part of an action sequence set to take place in China for the movie. The grassy area above will be set with controlled explosions, car flips, eruptions, and other pyrotechnics!

Filming will take place all day on August 23rd.

Transformers 4 Warehouse Explosion Video and Set Pics from Bazaar (Update 2)

Earlier Brian K. reported that Transformers 4 production was filming at Detroit's Russell Bazaar and across the street. He has now provided more info, pictures of the cast and a video of a big pyrotechnic explosion that was set off in front of a warehouse that looks sweet live so will be amazing once Bay and his editors do their magic. My guess is the scenes being filmed are a continuation of the chase sequence shot in Taylor, Texas.

Update: Thanks to Brian we have more pictures and another video. The pictures are from this afternoon from filming with the Rally Fighter (description below). The video shows Mark Wahlberg, Jack Reynor, Nicola Peltz and TJ Miller running from the smoking Sonic Racer.

Update 2: The warehouse location has been ID'ed as the Fisher Body Plant. To view another video of the explosions set off by "explosives hung on ropes diagonally across the front of the building" then click here.

Dark of the Moon Ratchet Spotted

Today the Transformers: Dark of the Moon Ratchet vehicle was spotted at Royal Oak, Michigan. However, the vehicle's appearance there does not seem to be part of filming for Transformers 4. Instead the truck was part of the 2013 GM Design Team Car Show that was held on Wednesday afternoon as part of run-up to the 2013 Woodward Dream Cruise on Saturday that has the "world's largest one-day classic car event." More details on the event can be found at Michigan Live. If you are interested in seeing more beautiful cars from the event, click here. The other reason pretty confident this vehicle isn't part of current TF4 filming is Bay and the cast were busy blowing up warehouses and filming vehicle chase sequences in Detroit. Thanks to KennyD for the link.

Transformers 4 Filming at Russell Bazaar in Detroit

Site reader Brian K. reports, with picture, that Transformers 4 production was filming this afternoon at the Russell Bazaar location in Detroit. He spotted a helicopter mounted with a camera, the Rally Fighter vehicle, Sonic RS Rally Car and two Cadillac Escalades. Later they changed their location across I-75 from the the Bazaar to the intersection of Harper and St. Antoine with the crew and copper. Exactly what is being filming is unknown.

Transformers 4's New Cast Member, Standalone Movie and Detroit Vids

This is kind of a catch all post of today's Transformers 4 info as didn't seem worth individual posts. The first bit of news is Victoria Summer (Saving Mr. Banks) tweeted she is joining the cast for a three week shoot. Mark Wahlberg continues his 2 Guns promotional tour and briefly discussed Transformers 4 with Digital Spy saying the same things before about his dad role but he also said "...its just very different. Its a standalone movie. Budget wise its the biggest of all of them." Video below. Last is 2 videos from last week with Bumblebee and Hound driving down the street underneath the People Mover and another of Wahlberg filming a scene shooting at something.