Transformers One is the ninth movie in the franchise to hit the big screen since the IP was launched in the 1980s. During that time, fans have seen every imaginable type of Transformers movie. The series has made billions of dollars, so there are clearly people seeing these films. Having said that critics have not always been fans. In fact, critics and fans have never been in agreement that a TF movie until now, which marks a piece of history and begs a question regarding a potential sequel.
Critics and general audience members are often at odds when it comes to high-profile releases. While fans haven’t necessarily rated most of the live-action Transformers movies as “good,” they have certainly spoken with their wallets and made it clear they were enjoyed.
However, thanks to the critically lauded Transformers One, a milestone has been reached. This the first time ever on Rotten Tomatoes that a movie in the franchise has been both “Certified Fresh” by film critics and embraced by moviegoers in the same way as it has also been “Verefied Hot.”
Rotten Tomatoes recently implemented the Popcornmeter, the fan equivalent of the critics' Tomatometer. While the “Verified Hot” designation is new, any movie that met the qualifications has been retroactively given the title. However, only Rise of the Beasts meets the fan qualification for being "hot," though the original animated The Transformers: The Movie comes close. Only Bumblebee had previously been considered fresh by critics. So it's impressive that T One has won over everybody.
The current state of the live-action portion of the action franchise has an uncertain future. However, one now has to wonder if Transformers One will signal the launch of an all-new series for the robots in disguise. With this sort of positive buzz from basically everybody who has seen it, the sequel has to be a possibility.
I Loved Transformers One, And Now I Really Want An Animated Beast Machines Movie
Of course, the real answer to the question of whether there will be a sequel will likely have less to do with a strong critical response, and a lot more to do with the financial receipts. While many who have seen Josh Cooley's film seem to love it, that doesn’t mean the movie earned major cash this past weekend. In fact, Transformers One didn’t even win the box office its opening weekend, coming in slightly behind Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which was in its third week of release.
That’s not a massive success and, in the modern box office world, it’s exceedingly rare for a movie to see its numbers improve strictly through word of mouth, but it does happen. If this animated Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry-led flick is a movie that could see multiple weeks of solid, if not impressive box office, it could eventually add up to something massive. And that would probably help make a sequel happen.
Quite frankly, it would very disappointing if a film that receives such high praise -- and makes franchise history in the process- doesn't receive a sequel, when there's currently room for one. Those who want that follow-up should implore the people they know to see Transformers One in theaters now. Also, read up on other titles that are part of the 2024 movie schedule.
