The Transformers universe began in 2007 with Michael Bay’s Transformers, and since then, it has turned into a multi-billion dollar franchise that contains multiple movies (with more on the way), a couple of short films, and one web show. As of the writing of this article, the film series has accumulated $5.286 billion at the box office and has a running time of 1,002 minutes (aka 16 hours and 42 minutes) over the course of the universe’s seven movies, so that is not even accounting for the short films and web series. It’s safe to say that Transformers is one of the most successful media franchises today.
Following the release of Transformers in 2007, the movies and shows have jumped around in continuity, with some serving as sequels and others as prequels to the original film. As a result, the order in which to watch the franchise can be a little bit convoluted. Of course, fans can watch the movies and series in release order, but it might make more sense to view them chronologically to understand the Transformers universe’s overarching story.
Transformers Movies & Shows In Release Order
As mentioned above, the Transformers universe began in 2007 with the premiere of the aptly named film Transformers. Following the movie’s success, the franchise expanded at a rapid pace with numerous other projects, including six more films, two shorts, and a television series released online. Although the world of Transformers will continue to grow in the coming years, the current release order is as follows:
- Transformers — July 3, 2007
- Transformers: Beginnings — October 16, 2007
- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen — June 24, 2009
- Transformers: Cyber Missions — January 21, 2010 – September 29, 2010
- Transformers: Dark of the Moon — June 29, 2011
- Transformers: Age of Extinction — June 27, 2014
- Transformers: The Last Knight — June 21, 2017
- Bumblebee — December 21, 2018
- Sector 7 Adventures: The Battle at Half Dome — April 2, 2019
- Transformers: Rise of the Beasts — June 9, 2023
Transformers Movies & Shows In Chronological Order Of Events
Bumblebee
Box Office: $468 million | Runtime: 1 hour, 54 minutes
Cast: Hailee Steinfeld as Charlie Watson, Dylan O’Brien as Bumblebee, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, John Cena as Jack Burns, Jorge Lendeborg Jr. as Guillermo “Memo” Gutierrez, John Ortiz as Dr. Powell, Jason Drucker as Otis Watson, Pamela Adlon as Sally Watson, Stephen Schneider as Ron, Len Cariou as Uncle Hank, Glynn Turman as General Whalen, Gracie Dzienny as Tina Lark, Ricardo Hoyos as Tripp Summers, Grey Griffin as Arcee, Steve Blum as Wheeljack, Andrew Morgado as Cliffjumper, Kirk Baily as Brawn, Angela Bassett as Shatter, Justin Theroux as Dropkick, and David Sobolov as Blitzwing
Bumblebee takes place in 1987 and tells the story of how Bumblebee first came to Earth and how Sam Witwicky wasn’t the first human the Autobot formed a connection with. Hailee Steinfeld’s character, Charlie, finds Bumblebee after Optimus Prime sent him to Earth to set up a base of operations while the other Autobots face off against the Decepticons on Cybertron. Bumblebee is injured, so Charlie helps fix him before the Decepticons arrive on Earth.
Sector 7 Adventures: The Battle at Half Dome
Runtime: 10 minutes
Cast: John Cena as Jack Burns, Sara Beil as Agent March, Matt Lambro as Agent Bell/Brawn, and Dave Cobb as Soundwave
Sector 7 Adventures: The Battle at Half Dome (which is preceded by the training video, Agent Burns: Welcome to Sector 7) is a short film that can be found on the home video release of Bumblebee. It takes place two years after the events of the prequel and features a battle between Bumblebee and Soundwave when Soundwave attacks Sector 7. The short film is in the form of a motion comic.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Box Office: $439 million | Runtime: 2 hours, 7 minutes
Cast: Anthony Ramos as Noah Diaz, Dominique Fishback as Elena Wallace, Luna Lauren Vélez as Breanna Diaz, Dean Scott Vazquez as Kris Diaz, Tobe Nwigwe as Reek, Sarah Stiles as Jillian Robinson, Lucas Huarancca as Amaru, Michael Kelly as Agent Burke, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Ron Perlman as Optimus Primal, Peter Dinklage as Scourge, Michelle Yeoh as Airazor, Pete Davidson as Mirage, Liza Koshy as Arcee, John DiMaggio as Stratosphere, David Sobolov as Rhinox/Battletrap/Apelinq, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez as Nightbird, Colman Domingo as Unicron, Cristo Fernández as Wheeljack, and Tongayi Chirisa as Cheetor
Although Transformers: Rise of the Beasts was released in 2023, the film’s events actually occur in 1994, seven years following Bumblebee. The movie chronicles the Autobots and Maximals’ desire to hide the Transwarp Key from the Terrorcons, and it introduces new humans to the franchise — Anthony Ramos as Noah Diaz and Dominique Fishback as Elena Wallace.
Transformers: Beginnings
Runtime: 22 minutes, 7 seconds
Cast: Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Frank Welker as Megatron, Mark Ryan as Bumblebee, Patrick Hallahan as Starscream, Brian Stepanek as Agent Simmons/Blackout, Kevin Dunn as Ron Witwicky, and Patrick Viall as Captain Witwicky
Like Sector 7 Adventures: The Battle at Half Dome, Transformers: Beginnings is a motion comic, and it was released on home video in 2007 following the premiere of Transformers. The short film serves as a prequel to the first movie and features Bumblebee coming to Earth in 2003 and Sector 7’s subsequent pursuit of him. It also includes the first time Megatron came to Earth millions of years ago.
Transformers
Box Office: $709.7 million | Runtime: 2 hours, 23 minutes
Cast: Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witwicky, Josh Duhamel as Captain William Lennox, Megan Fox as Mikaela Banes, Tyrese Gibson as Sergeant Robert Epps, Rachael Taylor as Maggie Madsen, Anthony Anderson as Glen Whitmann, John Turturro as Agent Major Seymour Simmons, Jon Voight as John Keller, Michael O’Neill as Tom Banachek, Kevin Dunn as Ron Witwicky, Julie White as Judy Witwicky, Bernie Mac as Bobby Bolivia, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Mark Ryan as Bumblebee, Darius McCrary as Jazz, Robert Foxworth as Ratchet, Hugo Weaving as Megatron, and Charlie Adler as Starscream
The movie that started it all, Transformers introduced the world to the live-action versions of the Autobots and Decepticons. The first film took place in 2007 and begins with the Autobots and Decepticons fighting for the AllSpark, destroying Cybertron in the process. However, the Allspark is on Earth, where Megatron found it before he was frozen in ice. More than a hundred years later, Decepticons and Autobots infiltrate Earth, and Bumblebee lands in the possession of Sam Witwicky. Related: The Full Live-Action Transformers Timeline Explained (& Best Watch Order)
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Box Office: $836.5 million | Runtime: 2 hours, 29 minutes
Cast: Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witwicky, Megan Fox as Mikaela Banes, Josh Duhamel as Major William Lennox, Tyrese Gibson as Robert Epps, John Turturro as Seymour Simmons, Ramon Rodriguez as Leo Spitz, Kevin Dunn as Ron Witwicky, Julie White as Judith Witwicky, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Hugo Weaving as Megatron, Tony Todd as The Fallen, Mark Ryan as Bumblebee, Jess Harnell as Ironhide, Robert Foxworth as Ratchet, Charlie Adler as Starscream, and Frank Welker as Soundwave
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen serves as the direct sequel to the first film and features the return of most of the original cast. The sequel takes place two years following the events of Transformers and features another war between the Autobots and the Decepticons. But this time, the Decepticons are led by the Fallen, who wants to destroy all life.
Transformers: Cyber Missions
Episodes: 13
Cast: Bronco D. Jackson, Tony Gialluca II, Tom Andersen, David Kledzik, and Eric Edwards
Transformers: Cyber Missions is a web mini series that contains 13 episodes and is set after Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The animated series can be found on YouTube and continues the story of the rivalry between the Autobots and the Decepticons.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Box Office: $1.124 billion | Runtime: 2 hours, 34 minutes
Cast: Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witwicky, Josh Duhamel as Colonel William Lennox, John Turturro as Seymour Simmons, Tyrese Gibson as Retired U.S. Air Force Combat Controller Chief Master Sergeant Robert Epps, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley as Carly Spencer, Patrick Dempsey as Dylan Gould, Kevin Dunn as Ron Witwicky, Julie White as Judy Witwicky, John Malkovich as Bruce Brazos, Frances McDormand as Charlotte Mearing, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Hugo Weaving as Megatron, Leonard Nimoy as Sentinel Prime, Mark Ryan as Bumblebee, Jess Harnell as Ironhide, Charlie Adler as Starscream, Robert Foxworth as Ratchet, James Remar as Sideswipe, Francesco Quinn as Mirage, and Frank Welker as Soundwave
Transformers: Dark of the Moon is the final film featuring Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witwicky and is set a few years following the events of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Sam assists the Autobots in securing technology found on the Moon that could help to restore Cybertron. But, of course, the Decepticons are after the same technology, resulting in another battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons.
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Box Office: $1.104 billion | Runtime: 2 hours, 45 minutes
Cast: Mark Wahlberg as Cade Yeager, Kelsey Grammer as Harold Attinger, Nicola Peltz as Tessa Yeager, Jack Reynor as Shane Dyson, Stanley Tucci as Joshua Joyce, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Frank Welker as Galvatron, John Goodman as Hound, Ken Watanabe as Drift, Robert Foxworth as Ratchet, John DiMaggio as Crosshairs, Mark Ryan as Lockdown, Reno Wilson as Brains, and Ben Schwartz as Bumblebee
Transformers: Age of Extinction contains a new human cast, including Mark Wahlberg as Cade Yeager, and takes place five years after the Battle of Chicago in Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The movie showcases Cade finding Optimus Prime while he is on the run from Cemetery Wind, a black ops division of the CIA. Of course, Cade and his family help Optimus in his new battle. Related: 12 Transformers Movie Human Characters, Ranked Worst To Best
Transformers: The Last Knight
Box Office: $605.4 million | Runtime: 2 hours, 29 minutes
Cast: Mark Wahlberg as Cade Yeager, Stanley Tucci as Wizard Merlin, Anthony Hopkins as Sir Edmund Burton, Laura Haddock as Viviane Wembly, Isabela Moner as Izabella, Jerrod Carmichael as Jimmy, Santiago Cabrera as Santos, John Turturro as Seymour Simmons, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime/Nemesis Prime, Frank Welker as Megatron, Gemma Chan as Quintessa, Erik Aadahl as Bumblebee/ZB-7, Jim Carter as Cogman, Omar Sy as Hot Rod, Ken Watanabe as Drift, John Goodman as Hound, and John DiMaggio as Crosshairs
The most recent film in the chronological timeline of the series is Transformers: The Last Knight, which takes place five years following the events of Transformers: Age of Extinction. The movie begins with Optimus Prime leaving Earth to find his creator, and unfortunately, he runs into some trouble when he comes across Quintessa, a Cybertronian goddess who brainwashes him. Meanwhile, on Earth, Cade is gifted a Talisman and faces yet another battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons in the Transformers film.
