For the past 40 years, the Transformers brand has been a major part of the lives of millions around the world, be it the highly successful toyline from Hasbro and Takara Tomy or the nearly dozen movies that have hit the big screen, with more features planned for the 2025 movie schedule and beyond, The franchise has made a ton of cash at the box office, and while it's arguably led to some of the worst movies based on toys ever made, the Transfomers movies have been a lot of fun for the most part.
If you’ve ever wanted to go back and re-watch all the various Michael Bay movies and their prequels, as well as those awesome animated movies, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s break down the Transformers movies in order, both chronologically and by release date.
The Live-Action Transformers Movies In Chronological Order
You can see all of the Transformers movies in order by release date at the bottom of this article, but for now, we’ll focus on the live-action film series and how to watch those seven movies chronologically. With the Michael Bay films and the two prequels respectively directed by Travis Knight and Steven Caple Jr., this series takes you through decades of the fight between the Autobots and Decepticons.
Bumblebee (2018)
Though one of the most recently released films in the franchise, 2018’s Bumblebee takes place in San Francisco back in 1987, two decades before the events of Transformers. In this box office smash hit, Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld) finds and befriends B-127, aka Bumblebee (voiced by Dylan O'Brien), after the friendly Autobot lands on Earth and transforms into a yellow Volkswagen Beetle.
Battling the Decepticons and a secret government agency known as Sector 7, the unlikely duo rely on each other to save both of their worlds before it’s too late.
Stream Bumblebee on Paramount+.
Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts (2023)
Though Transformers: Rise of the Beasts was a mixed bag for longtime Beast Wars fans, the 2023 action flick still had a lot going for it. Set between the events of Bumblebee and the first entry in Michael Bay’s series, Rise of the Beasts finally brought the Maximals into the fold and had them team up with the beloved Autobots to protect a powerful artifact sought after by the Terrorcons.
With its 1994 setting that allowed for so much good music, this big-screen spectacle starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback as the humans caught between the ancient fight was a lot of fun and could lead to a G.I. Joe crossover.
Stream Transformers: Rise of the Breasts on Paramount+.
Transformers (2007)
Though the prologue is set in the late 19th century, the vast majority of Transformers takes place in the mid-2000s. More than a century after coming to earth in hopes of finding the AllSpark, a device that could restore life and order on Cybertron, the Autobots, led by Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) team up with Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf), a seemingly normal teenager who helps them retrieve the powerful object before the Decepticons can use it for evil.
It's the movie that turned LaBeouf and co-star Megan Fox into big screen superstars, and introduced the world to that signature Transformers soundscape.
Stream Transformers on Paramount+.
Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen (2009)
Often viewed by franchise fans and otherwise as the worst Transformers movie, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen still ended up being one the most successful entries in the franchise. At least in terms of box office receipts, if not Rotten Tomatoes scores.
Set two years after the events of the first film, Sam Witwicky and Mikaela Banes (Megan Fox) once again find themselves caught in the fight between the Autobots and Decepticons. However, this time, they have a new threat, the Fallen (Tony Todd), who wishes to destroy all life on the planet.
Stream Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen on Paramount+.
Transformers: Dark Of The Moon (2011)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which made more than $1 billion at the box office, is set after Revenge of the Fallen and sees Sam and his new girlfriend Carly Spencer (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley) getting caught up yet again in the longstanding fight between the Autobots and Decepticons, who have teamed up with the villainous Sentinel Prime to recreate Cybertron on Earth.
Massive in scope and scale, this 2011 blockbuster turned up the action and stakes for the franchise, and those beloved (and hated) characters that populate it.
Stream Transformers: Dark of the Moon on Paramount+.
Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)
Set several years after the “Battle of Chicago” that took place in Dark of the Moon, Transformers: Age of Extinction follows Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg), a single dad and down-on-his-luck inventor as he unknowingly revives Optimus Prime and fights alongside the Autobot leader as he takes on new foes, both human and machine.
With the fate of Earth and Cybertron in the balance, the forces of good attempt to save the day before it’s too late. And considering the franchise didn't suddenly end right after this one, I think we all know how it went.
Stream Transformers: Age of Extinction on Paramount+.
Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)
Following the events of Age of Extinction, Wahlberg's Cade Yeager and the Autobots find themselves in a race against time in Transformers: The Last Knight when a brainwashed Optimus Prime is sent to Earth to carry out a plan to steal the planet’s energy core.
However, with some new allies (both human and machine), the heroes stand a chance at saving the planet and Optimus Prime from the clutches of evil.
Stream Transformers: The Last Knight on Paramount+.
The Animated Transformers Movies In Chronological Order
In addition to the all-time great animated series, there have been two animated Transformers movies over the years. Here’s how to watch them in chronological order.
Transformers One (2024)
Released in September 2024, Transformers One centers on Optimus Prime (Chris Hemsworth) and Megatron (Brian Tyree Henry) going from miners and best friends to powerful Transformers and mortal enemies.
The earliest-set movie in the franchise to date, this decorated underperformer at the box office throws audiences into the middle of the civil war that would shape the rest of the franchise.
Rent/Buy Transformers One on Amazon.
Transformers: The Movie (1986)
Released in 1986, Transformers: The Movie takes place years after the events of the O.G. animated series of the same name, and follows the next stage in the seemingly never-ending battle between the Autobots and Decepticons.
With Peter Cullen having already cemented his status as the ideal voice of Optimus Prime, the hero returns from his latest battle with Megatron gravely injured, and his allies find themselves being hunted by an evil and powerful force known as Unicron.
Buy Transformers: The Movie on Blu-ray on Amazon.
All Of The Transformers Movies By Release Date
As promised, here are all the Transformers movies by release date. If you want to watch all of the movies in the order they were released in theaters, this is going to do the trick.
- Transformers: The Movie (1986)
- Transformers (2007)
- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)
- Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
- Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)
- Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)
- Bumblebee (2018)
- Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)
- Transformers One (2024)
Well, this should help you watch all of the Transformers movies in order (both chronologically and by release date). And while the future of the franchise isn’t known at this point, there are still plenty of promising upcoming sci-fi films on the 2024 movie schedule.
