How Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts Finally Connected Two Major Franchises
Warning: This article contains major spoilers for "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts."
Those who managed to catch "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" early and without getting spoiled were in for the surprise of a lifetime. For much of its runtime, the latest sequel is pretty much exactly what you'd expect from a post-Michael Bay movie in this franchise — for better and worse. (You can read my more detailed thoughts on the movie with my review for /Film here.) That is until the very final scene finally delivers on a years-old promise. Fans of the Hasbro property have long imagined the possibility of seeing "Transformers" officially cross paths with the "G.I. Joe" in live-action and, after many fits and starts over the last decade or so, it's now becoming a reality.
If you were in disbelief seeing Anthony Ramos' Noah Diaz walk into that bland little office only to find out that he's been recruited to join the G.I. Joe, well, that only scratches the surface of what everyone behind the scenes felt. Director Steven Caple, Jr. and veteran franchise producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura both spearheaded this effort and brought it across the finish line, as detailed in a spoilery interview with Geek Culture (published over a week before the release of the movie, incredibly enough).
But getting the official go-ahead to smash the two properties together like action figures wasn't even the hardest part. By all accounts, that effort came mostly thanks to Caple, Jr. and his passion to make it work no matter what. No, the real obstacle came from having to figure out the why, as well.
Putting together a team...
Seeing character actor Željko Ivanek pop up at the end of "Rise of the Beasts" as what seems like a middle manager for some random office job before revealing himself as a member of the G.I. Joe wasn't exactly as game-changing as Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury appearing in the post-credits scene of "Iron Man" ... but for fans who've only dreamed of seeing this crossover come to fruition, well, maybe it was. For those wondering who to credit for pulling this off after so many previous attempts failed, look no further than director Steven Caple, Jr. In the Geek Culture interview, di Bonaventura explains:
Well, [director Steven Caple, Jr.] very early on brought up 'G.I. Joe' and my reaction was, 'Listen, we've thought about it a lot. I'm very open. What do you, how do you think it works?,' and he wasn't sure at that time. So what happened was, we kept coming back to 'G.I. Joe' and going like, 'Why? Why would they know?'
He's referring to the fact that, at this point in canon, Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen), Bumblebee, and the rest of the extraterrestrial Transformers are supposed to be big secrets, known only to a handful of individuals in both 2018's "Bumblebee" and "Rise of the Beasts" who have actually been made aware of their presence on Earth thus far. So how did the filmmakers make that work with the introduction of the G.I. Joe? It's pretty simple, actually.
Logic, shmogic
Look, if you end up thinking too hard about a "Transformers" movie to the point that the logic of the world falls apart completely, that's kind of on you and you alone. For a franchise created pretty explicitly to sell toys to children, these movies have certainly fulfilled their goal and then some. Michael Bay turned them into extravagant, spectacle-filled, and grossly indulgent blockbusters that felt like they were holding up a mirror to audiences and taunting, "Oh, is this what you want? Okay, have as much as you can take!" Travis Knight injected a sense of heart and wonder into "Bumblebee" as a course correction of sorts, which "Rise of the Beasts" attempts to continue. These aren't deep and thoughtful blockbusters, by any means.
So even the filmmakers had to realize that, at a certain point, there simply is no real logic to crossing over with "G.I. Joe." Just go with it and, in all likelihood, audiences will, too. As di Bonaventura revealed later in the same interview, that was their approach to figuring out how to include the G.I. Joe without breaking canon:
"And actually, what was cool about it, we certainly went, 'Well because they're G.I. Joe, they would know!' You know what I mean? Which isn't entirely logical, but it's emotionally logical that this top secret thing would somehow know."
Simple enough, right? I can't imagine many audience members getting hung up on minor details like that, especially if this is truly the direction the next movie in the franchise takes. No details have yet been made known about this buzzy crossover tease, so we'll just have to sit tight until then. In the meantime, "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" is currently playing in theaters.