Warning: SPOILERS lie ahead for Transformers One!
With the movie starting with him on the morally good side of things, Josh Cooley breaks down howTransformers Oneexplores Megatron’s villainous origins. The latest installment in the long-running franchise serves as an animated prequel, exploring the early relationship between Megatron, originally named D-16, and Optimus Prime, first known as Orion Pax, as they become friends and learn about a dark secret on Cybertron that will change their lives and planet forever. Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry leadtheTransformers Onecastas Optimus and Cybertron alongside Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key, Steve Buscemi, Laurence Fishburne, and Jon Hamm.
During a recent interview withVarietyin honor of the movie’s release, Cooley opened up about Megatron’s villainous origin inTransformers One. The director began by describing that the key to tapping into this origin was toreally focus on his relationship with Optimus, as their “conflict” is vital to his turn toward the morally dark side:
The thing that I really hung my hat on was the relationship between the two of them and making sure that it wasn’t, “I don’t like you anymore, I hate you, now we’re going to fight.” [The conflict comes] because they believe they both have the right answer to this problem.
The other major key to crafting a meaningful origin story for Megatron’s villainy wasto create “the ultimate bad guy” in Jon Hamm’s Sentinel Prime, as the more evil they made him, the easier it could be for audiences to “sympathize more” with Megatron, and “understand where he’s coming from”:
And the more that the ultimate bad guy is bad, that makes you sympathize more with Megatron because you understand where he’s coming from. And from the very beginning, I really wanted to make him somebody who you could understand where he’s coming from, so you feel that relationship more, and it’s not just somebody who turns evil to turn evil.
What Transformers One’s Megatron Origins Mean
Cooley’s Trilogy Plans May Deliver Heartbreaking Character Moments
The initial announcement that the prequel would see the characters as friends left some franchise fans curious as to howTransformers Onewould handleMegatron’s alienation from Optimusand his descent into becoming the leader of the Decepticons. As seen in the film,their division comes when Optimus attempts to stop D-16 from executing Sentinel Primefor his corrupt way of ruling over Iacon and keeping Energon from everyone, with the latter having a very different plan for saving the planet.
With Cooley having recently teased plans forthe animated prequel movie to expand into a trilogy, it seems likely that this will only be the start of Megatron’s turn to villainy. This is especially true asTransformers One’s endingsaw the character exiled along with Cyberton’s High Guard, of whom Starscream is a part, and Megatron dub them the Decepticons, with plans to get revenge on his former friend and regain control of Cybertron.
Transformers One’s Post-Credits Scenes Explained: What They Set Up
Transformers One has multiple post-credits scenes, and they help set up the franchise’s future after Optimus Prime and Megatron’s origin story.
This could, in turn, lead to some devastating character moments not only for Optimus and Megatron, but also for the other characters introduced inTransformers Onegoing into the next two movies. If Cooley’s plans to explore the War for Cybertron is saved for the final installment in his trilogy,this could lead to certain character deaths at the hands of Megatron, also hammering home his efforts to make the character a more sympathetic figure than seen in previousTransformersmedia.
Our Take On Cooley’s Megatron Comments
The Transformers Franchise Is In Good Hands
TheTransformersfranchisehas endured an infamously troubled run on the big screen prior to the animated prequel, with Michael Bay’s movies, in particular, giving seemingly little care to character development for its humans or robots, and instead building bridges between its various set pieces. As such,Cooley’s deeper thoughts about Optimus and Megatron prove to me the franchise is in the right hands. The latter character, in particular, has often been given very little nuance in priorTransformersmovies, always acting as somewhat of a cartoonish villain.
How Transformers One’s Rotten Tomatoes Score Compares To Other Transformers Movies
Transformers One has debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with a solid score from critics, but how does it compare to the rest of the iconic franchise?
By offering audiences a means to feel sympathy for Megatron both inTransformers Oneand beyond, it could even help influence all live-action adaptations going forward that include the character. Though there’s certainly plenty of entertainment to be had from large-scale fights betweenthe Autobots and Decepticons, giving viewers a reason to actually care about the villain’s motivations could create more meaningful stories going forward.
Transformers One
Cast
Transformers One is an animated action-adventure movie that marks the first animated feature-length film for the series in decades. The film will be a prequel to the franchise, and will tell the story of Optimus Prime and Megatron in their early years, how they met, and a closer look at the war on their home planet, Cybertron.
