Rise of the Beasts Director on Transformers/GI Joe Crossover Plans
The following contains spoilers for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, now in theaters.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is just the start for the Autobots' live-action relationship with G.I. Joe.
Director Steven Caple Jr. and producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, speaking individually with Entertainment Weekly, broke down Rise of the Beasts' surprise ending and what a Transformers/G.I. Joe crossover means for any potential sequels. "We're introducing Joe characters into the world that we're dealing with, on whatever our characters are gonna go do," di Bonaventura said, confirming that Caple pitched the idea to him during production. He then added, "We're also not through with the Maximals, so I imagine in the next movie we'll have Maximals, Autobots, and Joes."
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Caple, meanwhile, wanted the ending's crossover reveal -- in which a government agent, played by Michael Kelly, gives protagonist Noah Diaz (Anthony Ramos) a job offer with the Joes -- to feel organic in the context of Noah's story. "It was really about trying to get Noah fulfilling his arc, this guy who was looked down upon by society," the director explained. "At the end of the film, the military, out of all places, given the history that he had with it, was the one to take care of his brother and his situation." As for the sequel's plot, Caple noted, "It is definitely gonna incorporate some Joes characters, but it won't go into, maybe, the true origins of the Joes."
What Does a Transformers/GI Joe Crossover Mean?
To date, major crossovers between Transformers and G.I. Joe have largely been limited to the comics. These include a 1987 Marvel run and, more recently, IDW Publishing's Hasbro Comic Book Universe, which allowed the Transformers and Joes to co-exist alongside other notable IPs like M.A.S.K., Micronauts, and Rom. Paramount initially attempted to make a shared Hasbro cinematic universe with these franchises in the 2010s, but this plan was ultimately scrapped. Likewise, IDW lost the comic rights to both Transformers and G.I. Joe in 2022.
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G.I. Joe's live-action history currently consists of 2009's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, its 2013 sequel, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, and the soft reboot prequel, Snake Eyes. A G.I. Joe TV show about protagonist Lady Jaye was also planned, but eventually canceled, though di Bonaventura recently teased Paramount having "conversations about what to do with it as a film." Meanwhile, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts -- the seventh live-action Transformers film and second prequel after Bumblebee -- received mixed reviews but is currently a box-office success. For its opening weekend, Rise of the Beasts earned $60.5 million domestically, beating out the critically acclaimed Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse's $55.4 million.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is currently in theaters.
Source: EW
Source: CBR - Comic Book Resources
