The next movie in theTransformersfranchise is set to be a crossover withG.I. Joethat, while exciting, will only make the timeline more confusing. This movie was first teased inTransformers: Rise of the Beasts' ending, teasing a crossover that fans have been desiring for many years. Naturally, this only raised the anticipation forupcomingTransformersmoviesby providing the franchise with a future that is more exciting than anything set up by the many Michael Bay movies.
TheG.I. Joe/Transformerscrossover movieis expected in either 2025 or 2026 and is expected to see the return of Anthony Ramos' Noah Diaz as the alliance between the Autobots andG.I. Joeis built. Although the possibilities of this movie are endlessly exciting, there is one potential issue that could be raised by it. This issue is in connection to thelive-actionTransformerstimeline, which has long been unclear. Now, theTransformersandG.I. Joemovie has the potential to make the timeline even more confusing than the Bayverse did previously.
Transformers & G.I. Joe’s Placement In The Transformers Timeline Is Still Unclear
Paramount Is Yet To Confirm When The Movie Is Set
The main issue with the movie is its placement in theTransformerstimeline, or, more aptly, the lack thereof. As of the end of 2024, the movie’s placement on the timeline is yet to be confirmed, meaning there are several different points the film could take place. For one,the film could be set in the 1990s and be a direct sequel toTransformers: Rise of the Beasts, featuring the aforementioned Noah Diaz. Another possibility is that the film jumps to another decade, as has been common in recent years with theTransformersfranchise.
Transformers 8 & 9 Confirmed: Will Release After Rise Of The Beasts
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TheTransformers/G.I. Joemovie could be set after the other Michael Bay movies. After all, the ending ofTransformers: The Last Knightteased a sequel involving Quintessa and Unicron. Given Unicron’s involvement inTransformers: Rise of the Beasts, theG.I. Joecrossover could tie these two stories together by being set afterThe Last Knightand retconning the timeline. The final possibility is that theTransformers/G.I. Joemovie is not connected at all to any past movies and is simply a standalone crossover adventure. Regardless, whichever scenario the studio chooses needs to be confirmed sooner rather than later.
The Bayverse Order Of Events Has Long Been Unclear
Unfortunately, this confusion with when theTransformers/G.I. Joemovie is set is more evidence of how confusing the franchise’s timeline has been since 2018. The first five live-actionTransformersmovies were easy enough to understand; the first three focused on Sam Witwicky’s story and were set a few years apart from each other, withTransformers: Age of Extinctionacting as a soft reboot. This film was set a few years afterTransformers: Dark of the Moonyet focused on new human characters.
Transformers: The Last Knightcontinued the storylines teased inAge of Extinction, making those five movies fit nicely as an overarching story. However, things became confusing with 2018’sBumblebee. The film was simple enough as a prequel to the Bayverse as Bumblebee was confirmed to be on Earth before the other Autobots in 2007’sTransformers. That said, the ending of the film shows Optimus Prime and other Autobots reuniting with Bumblebee on Earth in the 1980s, making one of thebest-rankedTransformersmoviessimultaneously one of the most baffling.
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Transformers: Rise of the Beastsonly furthered this confusion. That film was a continuation ofBumblebeeyet had the Autobots on Earth in the 1990s. The involvement of Unicron then clashed with the villain’s story in 2017’sTransformers: The Last Knight, seemingly confirming that the two prequels were, in fact, not prequels at all. To top this all off, 2024’s animatedTransformers Onewas even labeled a prequel to the Bayverse.
Transformers Not Wanting To Let Go Of The Bayverse Has Made Things More Complicated
Distinction Was Needed Yet Not Provided
Overall, this confusion was a result of one thing:Transformersclinging onto the Bayverse.Bumblebeewas dubbed a standalone prequel to the Bayverse movies which, at first, was all well and good. It was only the ending of the film that clashed with the events of the Michael Bay films, making Paramount’s insistence thatBumblebeewas connected to them even stranger.
If Paramount had let go of the Bayverse, the former scenario of a new timeline would be much easier to understand and much less confusing…
Upon the release ofTransformers: Rise of the Beasts, there was still not a clear, definitive answer as to whether this film served as a sequel toBumblebeein a completely new timeline or was simply a second prequel to the Bayverse, detailing the early stories of the characters from 2007’sTransformers. If Paramount had let go of the Bayverse, the former scenario of a new timeline would be much easier to understand and much less confusing. This would then make the timeline issues of theTransformersandG.I. Joecrossover nonexistent, allowing the film to overcome the biggest obstacle it currently faces.
Transformers 8
Transformers 8 is the tentative title for the eighth canonical entry in the sci-fi action movie franchise, and it takes place after the events of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. This film will mark the second out of a trilogy of films that began with Rise of the Beasts.
