In late 2018, the Transformers film series wound the clock back to 1987 for Bumblebee, which showed how the eponymous Autobot ended up on Earth and befriended Hailee Seinfeld’s Charlie Watson. Five years later, the time is nearly upon us to step back into the world of robots in disguise with Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which is looping in the franchise’s Beast Wars mythology. And good news to those of you who were Transformers fans during the ‘80s and ‘90s, one of the actors in the 2023 new movie release thinks you’ll really like this latest round of robot vs. robot action.
Jason Avalos appears in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts as a security guard, and he recently stopped by The Alfonso Nation to talk about his experience working on the movie. Avalos also has the benefit of growing up as a Transformers fan, and he said the following about how this movie will get fans of the franchise’s ‘80s and ‘90s eras pumped:
But for me personally, this one is as close to the way I grew up, like ‘80s, ‘90s Transformers. It’s as close to that, minus Beast Wars storyline, but like the vibe, the energy, the comedy also and the way the characters are made. Steven Caplan’s amazing team of visual effects guys, the design… it’s as close to the 80s, ‘90s stuff as I’ve seen yet. So for me, the retro babies, I’m like yes!
It’s especially fitting for Jason Avalos to mention the ‘90s in reference to Transformers: Rise of the Beasts since the movie takes place in 1994, seven years after the events of Bumblebee. In this case though, Avalos is referring to the overall aesthetic and feel of the Transformers on display in Rise of the Beasts, excluding those who fall under the Beast Wars category. That being said, since considering that corner of the Transformers mythology stemmed the 1980s animated series and its animated film follow-up from 1986, you can be sure there were a lot of fans in the ‘80s and going into the ‘90s who were enamored with this group of characters who turned into giant animals rather than vehicles.
Jason Avalos also acknowledged during this interview that even being familiar with Transformers, he wasn’t able to grasp the full scope of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts when he was performing his role, saying:
What’s interesting is it’s so big that you don’t really I don’t think you fully get it – I don’t know that I fully understand it until I watch it. That’s what I think people [miss], that’s what I think the fun part is. You act, I go and I do a job, and I kind of like am there to do that one purpose.
Although Bumblebee and Optimus Prime will once again be back together for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, the majority of the movie’s lineup consists of new faces. On the human side of things, we’ll meet Anthony Ramos’ Noah Diaz and Dominique Fishback’s Elena Wallace, while on the heavy hitters in the Autobot, Maximal and Terrorcon camp include Ron Perlman’s Optimus Primal (the leader of the Maximals), Peter Dinklage’s Scourge (the leader of the Terrorcons), Pete Davidson’s Mirage and Michelle Yeoh’s Airazor, among others. Behind the scenes, Creed II’s Steven Caple Jr. directed the feature, and Joby Harold, Darnell Metayer, Josh Peters, Erich Hoeber and Jon Hoeber all worked on the script. The first Rise of the Beasts trailer premiered back in December, and you can take a look at the TV spot that aired during the Super Bowl below.
Whether you’re a fan of Transformers’ ‘80s and ‘90s eras or simply someone looking to enjoy blockbuster action on the big screen, make note that Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hits theaters on June 9. If you’d like to re-watch Bumblebee ahead of time, it can be streamed with a Hulu subscription.
