Date: 7th October 2010

Official 'Transformers 3' title leaks?


The official title of the next Transformers movie is Transformers 3: The Dark of the Moon, according to fansite Sibertron.

Collider reports that sources close to the production on the Michael Bay-directed action sequel have confirmed the name.

It was revealed today because Amazon put up a listing so people could pre-order the movie tie-in books. The information was first posted in a Transformers forum, and then got picked up by a few news sites before Frosty over at Collider verified the title with a source on the film.

I'm sure the title plays directly into the storyline of this third film in the series, which Michael Bay has stated repeatedly is the end of a trilogy. If that's true, then that would indicate he's got plans that wrap up the admittedly loose continuity of the first two films. It also suggests a stronger narrative focus this time out, because there's basically nothing in the second film that indicates that they're building on the first film or expanding any ideas or story themes. Or, to be honest, that they even understand what story themes are. What is obviously their goal with these films is building giant set pieces and showcasing as many robots as possible while Shia LaBeouf and an interchangeable hottie run around. Which is fine... it's worked out well enough for them so far.

I liked the first film and didn't like the second one, so I'm happy to wait and see if this is going to end Bay's run with the property well or not. I do know that when Devin Faraci published a spoiler about the film's cold opening, I thought it was a cool idea, and it seems like a perfect fit considering today's reveal:

"There's a disturbance on the Moon. A robot shaped disturbance. Scientists on Earth see this and the information gets passed up the chain of command. In the White House, men in black suits are breathlessly running through the halls and burst into the Oval Office. The President is behind the desk, back turned to the door, looking out the window. One of the men tells the President, 'Sir, something's happened on the Moon!' The President turns around...

... and it's John F. Kennedy."


Evidently, the Transformers were a big part of the space race in the history of these films, and the new film has something to do with whatever it was that happened on the Moon in the early '60s. The cast includes new and old faces like LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, John Turturro, Alan Tudyk, Ken Jeong, Patrick Dempsey, and John Malkovich.

Also, I have no idea who or what a Shockwave is, but if you're a Transformers fan and that name means something to you, he's the bad guy this time. I assume this is good news.

Franchise veterans Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson are starring in the movie along with newcomers Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Alan Tudyk and John Malkovich.

The film is expected to hit US cinemas on July 1, 2011.

Source: Press Release