The Transformers movies are a riddle to critics and armchair Hollywood executives. Nobody seems to like them very much, and yet they seem to make enormous amount of money, especially overseas, which has at least done us the service of never having to hear about how crass American culture is ever again since, hey, we’re only sending you guys what you want. And now the franchise is developing spinoffs, one of which will finally head to the true era of the Transformers: the 1980s.
According to Empire, Bumblebee won’t be about cartoon characters destroying each other in torn up vistas, or urinating on John Turturro, but rather a more family-friendly story with Hailee Stansfield as a tomboyish mechanic who discovers Bumblebee hiding on a used car lot. Hmmm, a young girl discovering a sentient car, who might, if they stick to tradition, be a Volkswagen Beetle? The Walt Disney Corporation might want a word, guys.
That said, the shift in tone is welcome, since let’s face it, the idea of the Transformers being a serious film franchise is, in of itself, ridiculous. Also, the fact that Kubo And The Two Strings director Travis Knight is at the helm. But if he doesn’t race Herbie at the finale, it’ll be a lost opportunity.
(via Coming Soon)