The pieces are finally starting to come together for the next installment in the Transformers franchise, which is set to be directed by Creed II‘s Steven Caple Jr. In an attempt to reinvigorate the flagging brand, Paramount commissioned two scripts to be written, and the one that they preferred would get the green light to head into production.
Joby Harold’s continuation of the Robots in Disguise’s Earthbound adventures won out over James Vanderbilt’s Beast Wars pitch, although the latter might end up making its way to the big screen eventually, which is presumably entirely dependent on how the next outing for the Autobots and the Decepticons fares at the box office.
Insider Daniel Richtman is now claiming that Dave Bautista is wanted for a Transformers role, but he doesn’t dive into any specifics over who he could be playing or even what project it’s for. The tipster has offered a steady stream of speculation regarding Beast Wars dating back months that it would be the biggest and darkest entry yet and form a trilogy set entirely in space with no humans on a scale similar to Avengers: Endgame, but he’s come up with precious little information for the movie that’s actually happening and gaining serious momentum, although the former WWE wrestler is hardly a stranger to effects-heavy pyrotechnics.
What we know for sure about the next entry in the series is that Hamilton‘s Anthony Ramos will play the lead role with support from Project Power‘s Dominique Fishback, while Darnell Metayer and Josh Peters are rewriting Harold’s draft of the screenplay. Bautista is very much a man in demand, but given that cameras are expected to start rolling on the next Transformers blockbuster before the end of the year, the Army of the Dead star likely won’t have a gap in his schedule seeing as he’s got Universe’s Most Wanted, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and In the Lost Lands on his horizon.