Previous Transformers movies have been high on clanging robot mayhem, and low on cuteness – aside from Sam Witwicky’s mischievous chihuahua Mojo, the franchise hasn’t been too concerned with four-legged friends. But that looks set to change in Bumblebee – the ‘80s-set spin-off prequel will see the beloved Autobot form a friendship with 18 year-old Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld), and her little dog too. Bumblebee, meet Conan.
Named after Arnie’s iconic action hero (“with the proper pronunciation like the awesome Barbarian, not the awesome talk-show host,” confirms director Travis Knight), the canine companion is just another thing for Bumblebee to try and get his metal head around when he joins forces with Charlie. “When Bumblebee encounters this creature, he tries to figure out how to communicate with him,” Knight tells Empire in the upcoming Review of the Year issue. “Him just trying to exist in a normal human domicile does not go very well.”
From the trailers, Bumblebee is looking like a warmer, more Amblin-esque entry into the series, and is the first live-action Transformers movie not to be directed by Michael Bay. Read Empire’s Bumblebee trailer breakdown with Travis Knight here, and read plenty more about the film in the December issue of Empire, on sale on 1 November.
Bumblebee arrives in UK cinemas on 26 December.
Keep up to date with all the latest movie news, click here to subscribe to Empire on Great Magazines and have the latest issue delivered to your door every month.