Transformers: Rise of the Beasts managed to exceed expectations at the North American box office this past weekend, overcoming stiff competition from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (which actually swung back ahead on Monday).
The movie told a mostly self-contained story but ended with a shocking cliffhanger when it was revealed that Michael Kelly's Agent Burke is, in fact, an undercover recruiter for G.I. Joe. The intention there was clearly to lay the groundwork for the long-awaited crossover between the two franchises, but will it happen in the next instalment?
It certainly sounds that way.
Talking to Deadline (via SFFGazette.com), Transformers: Rise of the Beasts director Steven Caple Jr. confirmed he's currently in talks to return for another movie.
"I am not officially signed on for the next movie," he started, making it clear no deals are done quite yet. "We're in the works now, but I'm not officially signed on. I'm in talks."
"I set up a lot of stuff in this film...anytime [the studio, producers, and I] talk about the future, you know, there's a lot of 'we,' the word, 'we,' so it kind of naturally fell that way. But everything else planted here was for the future, so, yeah, we're in talks."
Asked specifically if he intends to expand on that big G.I. Joe tease, Caple added: "I would love to. I have some ideas on how to branch out that part of the IP. If I can do this crossover that I plan on doing, I think there's a way to still feed the fans what we want in Transformers films, but also do something cool with another legendary IP, so to speak. I would be excited and thrilled."
It's clearly still early days, but we can't help wondering how this crossover will play out. An argument could surely be made that it would make the most sense not to be beholden to previous G.I. Joe movies, introducing new versions of those characters with different actors playing them.
After all, how better to launch a new franchise after this Transformers crossover than with a new cast fans actually want to see in action?
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is currently playing in theaters.