While Michael Bay previously said that the third Transformers movie, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, would be his last one, he’s back and giving the franchise an overhaul. Transformers: Age of Extinction introduces the Dinobots to the series, while swapping out the main cast for a new family of characters played by Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz and Jack Reynor.
Peltz says she was over the moon when she got the role in Transformers: Age of Extinction because having grown up with six brothers she is a “huge” fan of the Transformers cartoons and recent films.
“To be a part of it is so exciting for me,” Peltz says. “It was great getting to do it with Jack because we’re both fairly new to this business. So being able to learn together was a lot of fun.”
The new Transformers film shows a renewed focus on the human storyline — something that often took on the role of comic relief in the previous films.
“It has such a beautiful human element to it,” Peltz says. “A beautiful, human story along with the amazing robots and the action scenes.”
Peltz says the dynamic between Wahlberg’s character and Reynor’s provides part of the film’s humour.
Reynor says that for his character, Shane, it’s about finding a place for himself in the world.
For Reynor’s character, part of that is his strong commitment to his relationship with Tessa.
“At first, when it’s disclosed that Tessa is in a relationship with this guy, Mark’s character isn’t really a big fan of the idea,” Reynor says. “But as we progress through the film, I think Shane and Cade start to develop a mutual respect for one another just by seeing the commitment that they have to preserving her health and safety.”
Reynor says displacement is a common theme in the film which is something the human characters have in common with the Transformers. Trailers for the film have shown the Autobots hiding from the rest of the world, hunted by humans.
“I think you’re going to see the Autobots in this movie reflect a sense of anger and resentment that we see in contemporary society,” Reynor says. “Particularly in the United States.”