One Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts Character Was Directly Inspired By Fight Club's Tyler Durden
Across the "Transformers" franchise, from the 1980s animated series to its seven live-action films, the most recognizable and steady presence is Peter Cullen as the voice of Optimus Prime. For the younger generation, however, the voice of Pete Davidson in "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" is probably even more noticeable. The comedian, best known for his stint on "Saturday Night Live" and his raucous dating life, plays the Autobot spy Mirage in the latest robot-smashing epic, adding to the enduring legacy of bad jokes and cheesy dialogue the series has become known for over the years. (If you're a Davidson fan, "SNL" officially returns this weekend with Davidson as the host and Ice Spice as musical guest.)
Returning to the franchise for the first time since the third film, 2011's "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," Mirage has the ability to project holograms and transform into a Porsche 964 Carrera. Originally voiced by the late actor Francesco Quinn, the addition of Davidson gave director Steven Caple Jr. ("Creed II") the opportunity to craft a different kind of Transformer that could offer some much-needed comic relief to the prequel film that features the first team-up between the Autobots and the Maximals.
Before Davidson was on board as the newest sidekick in the franchise, Mirage was the first character Caple and Visual Effects Supervisor Gary Brozenich spoke about developing together. Since "Rise of the Beasts" travels back in time to tell its story, they looked to the G1 Design of the original toys for inspiration. Caple also had a strange reference point to help guide the wisecracking Autobot: Tyler Durden from "Fight Club."
Rule number one: Don't talk about Robot Wars
The newly released Blu-ray for "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" has over 90 minutes of special features, including an alternate opening and a different ending. A "Heroes" featurette also shows footage of Pete Davidson in the sound booth improving on some of Mirage's inappropriate lines of dialogue. In "Transformers" lore, Mirage has a rich backstory that's not fully explored in the prequel. On Cybertron, Mirage was a wealthy high roller with a great deal of swag. Here on Earth, Mirage took on characteristics similar to Brad Pitt's alpha male in "Fight Club," a character who turns out to be somewhat of a mirage himself.
In the featurette, Gary Brozenich shares how Steven Caple Jr. first envisioned the character before Davidson officially stepped in, saying:
"The first thing that Steven referred me to was the Tyler Durden character from 'Fight Club.' Slightly schizophrenic. You never know what he's going to say. He's probably going to say something inappropriate. But he's really kind of a nice guy. He's the friend that you wanna have but you don't always wanna have around."
Once Davidson added his own personal take and some of his own dialogue, Mirage became even more unpredictable. But the Autobot spy is still a sidekick and friend to Anthony Ramos' character, Noah Diaz.
Tyler Durden was much more than that. Although he's a product of Edward Norton's character's imagination, Durden was the underground spokesperson for a despondent generation, not an oversized toy in a "Transformers" movie with a storyline that didn't exactly turn out the way it was advertised. It's strange then, for the director of "Rise of the Beasts" to draw on "Fight Club," especially after Davidson's voice acting completely changed the character. If, however, Paramount ever made a "Transformers" movie based on Chuck Palahniuk's seminal book and David Fincher's remarkable film, that is a summer blockbuster I could definitely get behind.