Michael Bay Only Asked Two Questions Before Casting Megan Fox In Transformers
Prior to working in film, director Michael Bay spent a decade honing his craft as a maker of music videos and TV commercials. Kids of a certain age likely recall his "Got Milk?" ad featuring the murder of Alexander Hamilton, or his Clio-winning ad for the Red Cross. Bay also helmed a few videos for Meatloaf including "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through," "I Would Do Anything for Love," and "Objects in the Rear View Mirror (May Appear Closer Than They Are)." He also directed the Divinyls' "I Touch Myself," Winger's "Can't Get Enuff," Aerosmith's "Falling In Love (Is Hard on the Knees)," and Faith Hill's "There You'll Be." It was during these years that Bay developed his signature style of quick editing, oversaturated photography, and — perhaps unfortunately — the endless ogling of female bodies.
Many would agree Bay is a stylist more than a storyteller. His movies tend to be noisy and chaotic, concerned more with explosions and movement and noise than character or basic narrative coherence. He focuses on the aesthetic of his shots, the exhilaration of destruction, and the power of the military. For most of his female characters, Bay tends to shoot them like runway models, zooming in on certain parts of their anatomy, or framing them in a lascivious way. There is a notorious shot in his 2007 film "Transformers" (seen above) where the character of Mikaela, played by Megan Fox, leans over a car's exposed engine, and Bay frames the shot like a lingerie ad.
Fox, in a 2007 "Transformers" making-of documentary, revealed that she got the job playing Mikaela after a very quick, two-question interview with Bay. One question informed Fox that it would be a very physical role. The other let her know that, well, there would be certain wardrobe requirements.
Bay 'liked her look'
In the documentary, Bay confesses that he cast Fox largely because "I just liked her look." He was also keen on the fact that she was an unknown, allowing him to appear as if he "discovered" her. Fox, meanwhile, had already been acting for six years, and even appeared (albeit as an extra) in Bay's film "Bad Boys II." "Transformers," however, was her highest-profile project to date, and she became a recognizable film presence after. Her first interview, though, was curt and revealing. Fox said:
"The only thing Mike asked me when I was reading with him and auditioning, he just asked me if I could run. He's like, 'Can you run?' I was like, 'Well yeah, I think so.' And the other thing he asked me, he goes, 'Do you have a nice stomach?' And I said, 'Well, in my opinion, yes I do.' So I figured I'm going to be running, hopefully not naked, but I'll be running in a belly shirt, maybe."
"Transformers" fans will know that, yes, Fox was dressed in a belly shirt. This was 2007, and exposed midriffs were still considered fashionable. Bay and the film's costume designer, Deborah Lynn Scott, clearly wanted to dress Mikaela in something fashionable, but also revealing. For Bay, he needed someone who wouldn't tire after several takes of running, and who would look okay in the latest fashions. Not very stringent requirements, perhaps, but ones that Fox could easily live up to.
It certainly didn't hurt that Fox had good comedic chemistry with her co-star, Shia LaBoeuf. "I think Shia helped her out," Bay said of Fox. "I think that energy between them, I think it kind of works."
Fox and Bay would eventually have a falling out that lasted years. They made up in 2014.