By Borys Kit
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – The Transformers, toymaker Hasbro’s line of giant robots that morph into cars, trucks, planes, ships and other technological creations, are coming to the big screen.
DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures have acquired the movie rights for a live-action project. DreamWorks principal Steven Spielberg is on board as an executive producer, having reportedly played a key role in the protracted negotiations.
The film is slated for a summer 2006 release. Paramount is taking international distribution rights, while DreamWorks will handle domestic.
The Transformers are divided into two groups of robots, one led by Optimus Prime, who believes in tolerance and the sanctity of life, the other by Megatron, who espouses survival of the fittest and the extermination of biological life.
“We will be simplifying the universe and getting back to core, character-driven science fiction,” said producer Tom DeSanto, who wrote the story that the movie will be based on. said. “It will look like nothing you’ve seen before on a movie screen.”
Brian Goldner, president of Hasbro Toys, said, “This is one of Hasbro’s biggest global brands — 75% of young men have played with Transformers — and we expect big things. We know this team will deliver big things. The stars are aligned.”
Hasbro will work with the production team, DreamWorks and Paramount on all aspects of the film’s creative development, marketing and promotions and will manage merchandising in conjunction with the release of the film. Hasbro also will team with Takara, who has been the co-developer of the Transformers brand since its beginning in the early 1980s.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
