Why Princeton Isn't Princeton In TF2

In an article from the NJ Times, it was revealed that as part of the plot for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Sam Witwicky is "enrolled at a fictional East Coast school with an Ivy League feel." The natural next question is why a fictional school when Transformers 2 just finished filming at two distinguished institutions of Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania. It’s a question that UPENN students have also asked and started a public Facebook page on the subject.

Princeton? Really? You HAD to shoot at the University of Pennsylvania and choose to have us 'play' Princeton? Shia couldn't have gone to UPENN? Join this group and ask Michael Bay to CGI the University of Pennsylvania (not Princeton) back into Transformers 2.

The group already has 200 members and amazingly got a response from Bay via "Nelson" who is a webmaster for Bay and been a reliable source of information.

Michael has indicated to me that neither school gave him permission to use their names. There was a very funny “mom” scene were both felt it did not represent the school.

So there you go, now you know why its a fictional school. It seems the school officials have some explaining to do. Considering the movie is probably going to be PG-13 and I am assuming (maybe incorrectly) that Julie White is the Mom is question, then I think its safe to say the scene will probably be hilarious.

If I was a booster for either college I would be very angry at this news for the school official’s essentially pissed away god knows how much free advertisement for their schools. Sure, some people will know the schools where used for the movie but nothing like seeing the schools name on the big screen to get the curiosity and interest of the public. You can't buy that kind of attention. Nor the money and students it could bring in.

To bad Bay didn't choose my alma mater (UGA), they probably would have been okay with it. Besides, honestly I have to agree with the Facebook group, the Sam character is just not an "Ivy League" guy, he is a University guy. Nothing against Princeton but between the two schools, UPENN just “fits” the character better.

Thanks to RiahRiddle for the link.

Update:
From the comments, it turns out the University of Pennsylvania is an Ivy League school. I didn't know that and so far I have not spoken to any one that did (even two people form PA). I don't know but that strikes me as something like that should be common knowledge. So based on that, then Sam doesn't fit at either school because he simply doesn't strike me as Ivy League material based on how he was established in the first film. Sadly a comedy moment was missed as they could have had it so Sam didn't know UPENN was an Ivy League school and had to be corrected by Professor Colon (where Rainn would have had fun with various ways of doing that). Nice thing is the scene would have been funny and told millions and millions of people that UPENN is Ivy League. Oh well, too late now. Now I wonder if UPENN as one of those secret fraternity (or even better a sorority) that the other Ivy Leagues schools are rumored to have.