Summary

• Budget constraints led to Transformers One being forced into animation, but it allows for a grander vision.
• A live-action approach for the film on Cybertron wouldn't have made financial sense.
• Hemsworth may still appear with Autobots in a potential Transformers/G.I. Joe crossover.

After learning about Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson's rejected $500 million live-action Transformers movie at SDCC 2024's most exciting movie trailers — even if the unmade franchise movie is the one stealing my attention.

Slated for a September 20, 2024 release, the animated film is an origin story about the "robots in disguise" that's set on their home planet, Cybertron. At first, the announcement of the Chris Hemsworth recast of Transformers vet Peter Cullen worried me, but the SDCC delved into the fact that the Thor actor is playing a much younger, less experienced version of Optimus Prime (previously, Orion Pax), who goes from being brothers-in-arms with Megatron (a.k.a. D-16) to archenemies. Still, I can't help but wonder how a live-action version of Transformers One would've fared.

Transformers One Producer Jokes That A Live-Action Movie Couldn't Have Happened Without A Massive Budget

Animation Was The Only Logical Fit For The Epic Vision Of Transformers One

At the film's San Diego Comic-Con , Screen Rant learned from producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura that Transformers One was "forced into animation" due to budgetary reasons. Di Boneventura noted that if the team had tried to make the project as a live-action movie, it probably would have cost at least $500 million. The only logical path forward for a Transformers origin story — one that features no human characters at all — was to lean into animation. While Di Boneventura was being a bit facetious, it's also true that a live-action Transformers One just couldn't really work.

It reminds me of how Disney briefly dubbed its 2019 Lion King remake "live-action"...

Since the film is entirely set on Cybertron, a live-action approach just wouldn't have made financial sense. movie in the Transformers franchise.

Transformers & GI Joe's Crossover Can Fulfill The Impossible Chris Hemsworth Live-Action Movie

Hemsworth Could Still Appear Onscreen With The Autobots & Decepticons

Following the tease at the Hemsworth is in talks for the Transformers/G.I. Joe crossover. Of course, if Hemsworth is cast in the crossover, I'd guess he'd be a member of the G.I. Joe faction, allowing him to fight side-by-side with Transformers' iconic characters. If it happens, the crossover could give us a sense of what a live-action Transformers One might have been like with Hemsworth in the middle of the action.

Transformers One is slated for release on September 20, 2024.