The Best-Reviewed Transformers Movie In Years Is Streaming On Netflix

In 2024, the "Transformers" movie franchise was fumbling. After reaching over $1 billion at the box office with both "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" and "Transformers: Age of Extinction," the toyline-turned-blockbuster film series began to stumble, seeking better stories but not quite breaking the bank as it had before. After "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" earned $439 million, Hasbro and Paramount decided to change tactics and adopt a more animated approach. The result was the far more family-friendly CGI prequel, "Transformers One," which is now available to stream on Netflix. The film told the story of when the franchise's biggest characters, Optimus Prime and Megatron, were dear friends before transforming into bitter rivals.

It marked the first time in the franchise that the Robots in Disguise returned to theaters without Peter Cullen voicing Optimus Prime. Instead, the Matrix of Leadership passed to MCU hero and movie star Chris Hemsworth, who voiced Orion Pax before he became the Autobots' leader, Optimus Prime. Joining him to bring more Cybertronian legends to life was Brian Tyree Henry as D-16, who would later become Megatron. Also joining them were Scarlett Johansson as Elita-1, Keegan-Michael Key as B-127 (who'd eventually become Bumblebee), and Steve Buscemi as Starscream. Laurence Fishburne provided his cool rasp for Alpha Trion, with Jon Hamm playing Cybertron's ruler, Sentinel Prime. The cast was brilliant, the animation was stunning, and the story was crafted to perfection. It's a shame that, even with critical backing, "Transformers One" didn't pull the franchise out of its rut.

According to Rotten Tomatoes, "Transformers One" was a critical hit. Earning 89%, it was the franchise's second-best movie since it began in 2007, trailing just behind "Bumblebee" at 91% – the film that earned the kind of praise that would get the franchise the green light. Wendy Ide of The Observer called the film, "A refreshingly new breed of Autobot adventure — one that has been notably souped-up in the brains department." Rafer Guzman of Newsday also praised the film as more than just a rock 'em, sock'em robots marathon (no offense, "Real Steel"), saying, "A usually dumbed-down franchise gets a jolt of intelligence and spirit in this solid animated entry." Justin Clark of Slant Magazine also hyped the film for shifting creative gears from its predecessor and avoiding the live-action route. "A realm without physical limits is truly where the Transformers belong, but it doesn't stop the film from delivering some surprising pathos while it's there."

Sadly, even with all those thumbs-up, it wasn't enough to draw an audience to see what was apparently such a great film. With an estimated budget of $75 million, the film only made $129 million, leading to the cancellation of all plans for a new franchise boost. Since then, though, plans for Cybertron's heroes and villains have shifted again, moving from a 10-project to-do list to scrapping them all. Now the future is calling in old creatives to get back in the driver's seat. While some fans are excited, one glaring issue needs to be addressed, and "Transformers One" might have the answer.

It was announced this week that, after directing the first five films, master of disaster and damage, Michael Bay might return to helm the new movie, with Steven Spielberg also returning as producer (via The Hollywood Reporter). It marks a return to the drawing board after the lengthy list of projects was revealed, including a "G.I. Joe/Transformers" crossover movie that had been sitting in limbo and was set to follow the events of "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" in 2023. Plot details aren't available just yet, but it has been confirmed that the movie will be set in the present day. The only obvious concern, though, is who could possibly be the new Optimus Prime.

Anticipation has grown online since the announcement, but the obvious concern is who could replace legendary voice artist Peter Cullen, who passed away earlier this year. One route could be to remove Optimus from the next chapter entirely, but a "Transformers" tale without the fearless Autobot leader just doesn't seem right. With that in mind, is there a chance that Chris Hemsworth could reprise the role that he filled fairly well in "Transformers One"? If so, could there also be space for the other cast behind the animated characters to return, cementing a new set of stars to bring the "Transformers" to life. Doing so could give "Transformers One" the justice it deserves, albeit disguised in a slightly different robot movie.