Transformers Oneis one of the most beloved entries in thelong-runningTransformersfranchise, giving audiences a glimpse of the past relationship between the series' two most iconic characters, Megatron and Optimus Prime.Transformers One’s widespread acclaimwas due to many factors, but it came in large part because of the film’s remarkable characters, many of whom are the best interpretations of those characters on the big screen thus far. The deep and complex relationships shown between these fictional robots elevates the movie to another level entirely, building a film that is great in nearly every way.

Transformers One’s castis undoubtedly one of the best parts of the movie, and helps to sell every single character. There are plenty of elements that make the film great, from the music, to the plot, to the great action, butone element that shines particularly well inTransformers One, that has gone mostly ignored by the rest of the live-action films, is having a truly great villain.Transformers Oneshines in this area, showing off two excellent examples of villainy that the live-action movies should take note of.

Orion Pax (Chris Hemsworth) pointing with his finger in Transformers One

Transformers One Shows How Important Great Villains Are In Megatron And Sentinel Prime

Transformers One Presents One Of The Best Interpretations Of These Characters

A great antagonist can often make or break a movie, and thankfully,Transformers Onehas Sentinel Prime and Megatron as two very different but nonetheless exemplary villains.Megatron is a very straightforward character, someone who starts off as a good person but is slowly corrupted and turned towards evil by the society he is trapped in and the people who run it. It’s a classic villain archetype, butMegatron’s fall inTransformers Oneis executed so well that it feels fresh and new.

Sentinel Prime has a very simple motivation in the film, but that doesn’t detract from his great on-screen presence.

Transformers One 2024 Film Official Poster

On the other side of the villain spectrum,Transformers One’s Sentinel Primeis a perfect representation of a purely evil, selfish character with little in the way of redeeming qualities. Sentinel Prime has a very simple motivation in the film, but that doesn’t detract from his great on-screen presence.The character avoids the trap of making the purely evil character brooding and dark, instead having him crack jokes while he kills people, which is, of course, doubly effective because of Jon Hamm’s outstanding performance as this smarmy, truly detestable dictator.

Sentinel Prime And Megatron Were Surprisingly Forgettable

Both Sentinel Prime and Megatron have appeared in the live-actionTransformersseries, but unfortunately, neither of them were able to reach the same heights as the characters inTransformers One. Megatron has appeared in most of the live-action films, but his showings have been mostly quite weak.

He has generally been presented as nothing more than an obstacle to the heroes, a mustache-twirling bad guy who is evil simply for the sake of being evil, without any nuance or interesting personality quirks, compared toTransformers One’s contrived and sympathetic Megatron. Sentinel Prime only appeared inTransformers: Dark of the Moon, where he pretends to ally himself with Optimus and the Autobots before revealing his treachery.

Transformers One’s New Release Could Help Save The Movie After Disappointing Box Office

Transformers One has a final chance to redeem itself in the hopes of a continuation once it arrives on digital after its box office run.

He does have a motivation, wanting to rebuild the Transformers' home of Cybertron, but the film never takes the time to properly explore the character, and he barely has a personality of his own.Transformers Onehas a much more interesting version of both of these characters, and hopefully the live-action villain problem won’t continue forever.

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.