Summary
Now that aG.I. JoeandTransformersmovie crossover has once again been confirmed to be coming in the very near future, it’s officially time to start thinking about what this movie could entail. The degree of difficulty is that it appears that the people behind this film understand that films likeG.I. Joe: RetaliationandTransformers: The Last Knighthave damaged both franchises because they weren’t beloved, even by the most dedicated fans.
That’s led the man who has the job of safekeeping the nextTransformersmovie to really put quite a bit of thought about how he wants to keep the series going.Transformers: Rise of the Beastswas considered slightly higher quality than some of its immediate predecessors and was planned as the start of abrand newTransformerstrilogythat laid the groundwork for theG.I. Joecrossover. The big question for fans of both franchises as well as producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura is how best to meld the two worlds into the same universe.
Focus on Transformers Character Development Takes Center Stage
During a recent interview withCollider, di Bonaventura talked about how he understands that fans of theTransformersfranchise are very interested in seeing how the giant alien robots can relate to one another emotionally. He added that he believes the animated film out this summer,Transformers One,willlay some of this groundwork. And while that Josh Cooley-directed flick isn’t part of the new trilogy kicked off byRise of the Beasts, the producer wants to have the same emotional identification with the live-action heroes in the Transformers and G.I. Joe crossover.
“So we’re going to have to figure out how to create that room, that we can afford that, and create a story that you can take more advantage of that,” di Bonaventura told the publication.
As a bigger hint of where the producer wants to go, he added that the previousTransformersmovies tended to feature Optimus Prime and his crew reacting to human problems rather than having their own drive and reason for being. This time around, di Bonaventura believes the motivation forboth the Autobotsand, to a lesser degree, the Decepticons needs to be something more important to their needs and desires.
“Instead of them reacting to humans or reacting to the human plot, what is their drive, has to be part of that story now.”
So where do all of these hints at what the producer sees for theTransformersandG.I. Joecrossover film? It’s possible that this second film in the trilogy could be more of a setup that will feature a much heavier integration in the third and final chapter in this particular storyline. If that happens to be where the franchise goes, it’s a direction that might surprise some fans who are expecting to see all theirfavorite Joe or Cobra operativesfighting alongside their favorite Autobots or Decepticons, respectively.
Transformers With A Smattering Of G.I. Joes
Those who watchedRise of the Beastswere treated to a very short tease of thearrival ofG.I. Joeintothe same universe that featured several different sets of the warring robots and it’s possible the small nod, rather than a full introduction could give di Bonaventura and whoever directs the next film some wiggle room.
If the producer wants to see the characters of theTransformersto legitimately develop and find purchase in the consciousness of the fanbase, the next film will have to be more than randomly introducing several different Autobots and several different Decepticons in the middle of a battle in a way where viewers can’t even tell who is who, as hasbeen the case far too oftenin the previous installments. It will have to offer up reasons to care about characters beyond Bumblebee and Optimus, and cutting down on the explosions and destruction will help.
It’s not yet known what role Chris Hemsworth will have in the upcoming film.
Not immediately introducing an entire team of Joes and then an entire team of Cobra soldiers will also help. The absolute best way to make sure that people really start to care about the motivations of theTransformersis to make it obvious the filmmakers care. The animatedTransformerstelevision show was able to introduce new characters and new plot points over and over because they had multiple episodes and seasons to do it. The live-action movies don’t have that luxury, and they will need to introduce characters much more slowly. Fans shouldn’t expect massive battles between the two sides, at least not until the final act.
G.I. Joes Won’t Be Completely Ignored
None of this is to say that the nextTransformersandG.I. Joecrossover movie should consist of two hours of robots fighting and then 10 minutes ofG.I. Joe. There needs to be more integration than that to really call the film a crossover to begin with.
With Chris Hemsworth already on board for the next installment, he will get more than a little screen time (always assuming of course, he’ll be a human character). The actor isn’t jumping from starring in Marvel movies to 30-second appearances in this universe. But it’s possible Hemsworth’s teammates and adversaries could be rolled out much more slowly. It could be more like what was done in flicks likeSnake Eyes: G.I. Joes Origins.
But it’s possible Hemsworth’s teammates and adversaries could be rolled out much more slowly.
Introducing a few Joes, allowing them to interact with Prime, Megatron and the rest, and then bring in the two human armies more fully in the third title in the trilogy could be a way to give all the main characters a little more fleshing out. While this isn’t an approach that most fans would be expecting, it could be the one thatgives audiences the bestTransformersandG.I. Joecrossover.
