Ever since reports of a fifth "Transformers" movie came out, fans of the franchise have been eager to see what would be next for Optimus Prime and his crew of autobots. Now, reports have circulated online that the studio behind the franchise are looking into creating its own "shared universe" that would bring in more movies for the fans.
Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner confirmed the news in its quarterly meeting of earnings, said Screen Rant.
Goldner said in the meeting, "Our plan with the studio and filmmakers you may have heard some writers being hired and we have in fact brought in Akiva Goldsman to lead a group of writers to really created a strategic plan around 'Transformers.'"
The CEO added, "We think there are a number of stories to be told fro the brand that has been around for 30 years with amazing canon and mythology. We would expect the sequel to the 'Transformers' movie [TF4] to happen in 2017."
It seems that Paramount Pictures aims to to expand the franchise to the same "shared universe" business model that made Marvel successful. According to Collider, the executives from the studio already began setting people in place to bring this plan into fruition.
Goldsman, who is famous for his works in "A Beautiful Mind" and "Batman & Robin," has been brought in to lead the team of writers that would become the "brain trust" for the "shared universe."
Another report in Collider listed director Michael Bay, executive producer Steven Spielberg, and producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura to be among the people to brainstorm for the upcoming titles and spinoffs in the franchise.
While all four men are included in the "brain trust," it remains unclear what roles they would play in the development of the movie. Some reports noted that Goldsman would not actually pen the screenplay but would only act as a person-in-charge of the group.
Meanwhile, Bay, who directed the past "Transformers" film, also expressed his desire to move forward from the franchise and it is not clear if he would sit as the director in the next film or work in an executive producer capacity.
With all these details still not ironed out, it is likely that the next "Transformers" movie would arrive in 2017 as opposed to a 2016 release that was initially reported
Aside from the potential year of release, no other details were revealed for the upcoming sequel.
