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While the 2009 sequel to the originalTransformersfailed on many fronts and committed the cardinal sequel sin of rehashing the ideas of the first movie, it still delivered with its visuals. Despite being 15 years old, Michael Bay’sTransformers: Revenge of the Fallenstill puts many modern blockbusters to shame following its impressive visuals and on-location action sequences.
This is prominent during the film’s opening, which is often deemed one of the most impressive scenes the franchise has to offer and we’ve Bay’s stubbornness to thank for it.
Michael Bay Opted to Shoot the Massive Sequence on the First Week of Filming
Although it’s common for filmmakers to start productions on a small note and gradually catch pace after growing familiar with the crew,Michael Bayisn’t any other filmmaker. Known for making everything extravagant and loud, Bay prefers to“start ’em hard and fast”, as according to him, the first week of the movie“sets the entire tone for the show”.
“I called 50 times… I would not let him off the hook”: The $712M Dwayne Johnson Franchise Michael Bay Originally Didn’t Want in Transformers
As a result, Bay chose to film the Bethlehem Steel scene, which is also the film’s opening, during the first week of filming, and it was far from smooth for the entire crew. Following the magnitude of the sequence, which saw Apache and Blackhawk helicopters, it took them three massive night shoots to film the opening.
Speaking of its scale, Special Air Service Forces member Matthew Marsdendetailed:
I think at one time we had two Apache helicopters, two Blackhawk helicopters, and also two additional filming helicopters along with Humvees, Rangers. You know, I mean, it was just massive
The scale isn’t surprising, as Bay is currently one of the few modern-day action filmmakers, who wholeheartedly relies on practical effects, which was also apparent in his adrenaline-filled thrillerAmbulance.
Studio Begged Michael Bay to Do MoreTransformers
While it wasThe Last Knight,which ended Michael Bay’s tenure in theTransformersfranchise, theAmbulancefilmmaker was contemplating leaving the franchise after the third one. Speaking withUnilad, Bay recalled thatSteven Spielbergadvised him to move on from the IP after the third film, and even though Bay did agree to stop at three, the studio begged him to stay.
As the story goes, thePain & Gaindirector did return for the fourth installment, whose billion-dollar success resulted in him helming the fifth one too.
I made too many of them. Steven Spielberg said, ‘Just stop at three’. And I said I’d stop. The studio begged me to do a fourth, and then that made a billion too. And then I said I’m gonna stop here. And they begged me again. I should have stopped. They were fun to do.
Although Bay parted ways with the IP in 2017, he did serve as a producer onRise of the Beastsand even gave director Steven Caple Jr.hints and tipsto shape the film.
“Michael Bay was so unbelievably petty for this”: Fans Can’t Believe the Brutal Treatment T.J. Miller Received in Transformers For Annoying Michael Bay
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallenis available to stream on Max.
Santanu Roy
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2540
Santanu Roy is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on movies, with over 2,000 articles under his belt. He has been pursuing a degree in Animation and possesses a deep love for the medium of animation. Having spent the better part of the last two years pumping out articles for FW, Santanu excels at covering movie analysis and news surrounding Pixar, DCU, DreamWorks, and Batman’s cinematic legacy.With psychological thrillers and intimate slice-of-life dramas ranking among his favorite genres, Santanu is a big admirer of Luca Guadagnino, Shane Black, Park Chan-wook, and Brad Bird.
