Director Steven Caple Jr. has been hard at work on the highly anticipated seventh installment of the beloved Transformers franchise. When Rise of the Beasts hits the 2023 new movie release schedule, it will feature a variety of new robots in disguise, including the first big screen appearance of live-action versions of characters from the classic 90s television show Beast Wars. However, bringing these bots to life on the big screen requires a lot of skill and coordination, especially when it comes to fighting scenes. Luckily, Caple had some experience with that sort of thing. With that, the filmmaker explained how directing the exhilarating and well-reviewed Creed II was “super helpful” for his turn with the Autobots.
On the surface, the Rocky spinoff and Transformers flick couldn't seem anymore different. However, Steven Caple Jr. was able to meld the two experiences from a behind-the-scenes standpoint. He spoke with The Hollywood Reporter and explained that directing the boxing matches between Creed and Drago was helpful when conceptualizing fights between the metal titans. While the scraps between the two warring factions of aliens have been enjoyed by movie lovers for years now, Caple had a specific goal in mind for this flick. When talking about how the sports movie impacted things, he said:
I actually brought on the same stunt team. [Creed II stunt coordinator] Danny Hernandez reached out and introduced me to this guy named [fight coordinator] Shahaub Roudbari. I just wanted to make sure we had some really cool fight sequences in there. I did the same thing on Creed II, but I wanted the fights to be more raw. You felt the punches in Creed, and I was like, ‘How do you do that with robots and no blood? How can we make sure we feel the punches and the blows, and keep the transformation aspect to it? How can we dabble in that?’ So everything is not just shoot ’em up. When we were doing hand-to-hand combat, it was like, ‘How can this character bend his arm this way or transform mid-fight? How can we have a weapon transform mid-action?’
The director faced a significant hurdle in producing authentic fights in Rise of the Beasts, considering that the fighters were massive robots. However, he was fortunate enough to have something that he did have when he worked on the Michael B. Jordan-led movie -- characters comprised of CGI:
So, [Creed II] was super helpful, but when you’re making a Creed film, you have to fake the punches. No one could really get hit, or at least you hope they don’t. But on this one, you could really punch the hell outta your robots. You’re trying to make people cringe even though everything they’re seeing on screen is fake. So that is the goal.
Impactful fight scenes weren’t the only challenge he faced while taking on the Transformers franchise. He recently spoke about the difficulties of bringing the universe to life on the big screen and diving into an effects-heavy movie for the first time. Luckily, he had OG series director Michael Bay, whom he turned to for advice.
In terms of what we know about Rise of Beasts, the film is set in 1994, seven years after the events of Bumblebee, and features the Autobots teaming up with new allies, the Maximals, to battle the Terrorcons and their leader -- the planet-eating Unicron. Steven Caple Jr.'s goal is to create an emotional connection between the audience and both new and familiar franchise characters. He's eager for fans to see the film, which he hopes will lay a strong foundation for the future of the franchise. Here's hoping it's thrilling and provides fight sequences that match the intensity of Creed II's.
Get ready to “roll out” your calendars and mark June 7, 2023, because that’s when Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will finally hit theaters! Brace yourself for some serious action, mind-blowing excitement, and of course, giant robots. But hey, if you can’t wait until then to get your Autobot fix, check out Bumblebee, the 2018 blockbuster that’s currently streaming if you have a Paramount+ subscription. It’s the perfect way to get your gears turning while you wait for the next chapter of the blockbuster saga.
