Beast Wars Explained: What Transformers 7’s Rise Of The Beasts Story Is About

The story for Transformers 7, officially titled Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, is heavily based on the Beast Wars: Transformers era of the classic cartoon. So, what is Beast Wars, and where did the animal Transformers come from? Beast Wars was launched in 1996, first as an animated series before growing to include its own toy lines, other shows, video games, and comic books. Michael Bay’s original Transformers trilogy comprised huge moneymakers for Paramount, but more recent entries such as The Last Knight and Bumblebee didn’t quite live up to them (although were by no means bad). Rise of the Beasts will be reinvigorating the Transformers movies with a fresh story based around the introduction of Beast Wars characters — warring factions of animal Transformers.

After the Transformers soft reboot Bumblebee hit theaters in late 2018, there was uncertainty about where Paramount would take the next new Transformers movie story. There’s been talk of a Bumblebee sequel, due to the film’s warm reception and box-office success, but it was also reported early on that Paramount was planning a movie adaptation of Beast Wars. This was confirmed when Paramount officially announced that Transformers 7 would indeed be the long-awaited Beast Wars movie. Directed by Steven Cable, Jr. (Creed II) and set for a June 9th, 2023 release, the action film will star In The Heights’ Anthony Ramos and Judas and the Black Messiah’s Dominique Fishback. So, what is Beast Wars, and how will the Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts plot incorporate the Maximals and Terrorcons?

Related: Transformers 7: Every Confirmed Beast Wars Character Explained

Where & When Beast Wars Is Set In The Transformers’ Universe

The events depicted in the Beast Wars: Transformers cartoon took place 300 years after the original 1980s Transformers animated series and movie, and the events of the Beast Wars cartoon probably influence the new Transformer movie story. At this point in the animated timeline, the heroic Autobots and the Decepticons no longer exist. In their place are their descendants, which are the Maximals and the Predacons. The story follows the Maximals, whose pursuit of the Predacons causes them to crash-land on a primitive world. The planet’s primary energy source, Energon, affects the Transformers in a way that forces them to take the forms of various animals, rather than vehicles.

While there are animal transformers in previous Transformers live-action movies (such as Age of Extinction’s Dinobots), those seen so far haven’t been the descendants of Autobots and Decepticons from the Beast Wars timeline.

Beast Wars’ Heroes & Villains Explained

When Rise of the Beasts was announced, many unfamiliar with the cartoons were wondering what is Beast Wars, and what makes these animal Transformers different from those seen in the live-action Transformers stories so far. The Maximals and the Predacons are Beast Wars’ representations of the Autobots and the Decepticons. The Maximals are led by Optimus Primal, who chose the name to honor the legacy of the classic Transformers hero. His beast form in the cartoon was that of a gorilla. Among his allies were Rattrap, Cheetor, Depth Charge, Airazor, and Tigraton, who could morph into a rat, a cheetah, a manta ray, a falcon, and a tiger respectively. There was also Rhinox, the powerhouse of the team. As his name implies, he can transform into a powerful rhino.

The opposing side, the reptilian Predacons, follow the orders of a new version of Megatron, who could originally take the appearance of a tyrannosaurus rex. Later on, though, he acquired the form of a dragon. His minions included Scorponok (scorpion), Tarantulas (tarantula), Terrosaur (pterodactyl), a new take on Starscream (wasp), Inferno (fire ant), and Blackarachnia (black widow spider), the latter of which being a character who eventually switched sides to join the Maximals. Several Beast Wars characters, like Optimus Primal, Cheetor, Airazor, and Rhinox, are confirmed to be in Transformers 7. However, Rise of the Beasts doesn’t appear to feature the Beast Wars Megatron, or any Megatron — the villain in the new Transformers movie is the Terrorcon Scourge, voiced by Game of Thrones and Cyrano star Peter Dinklage.

Transformers 7’s Confirmed Characters & Story Explained

Paramount’s press conference and the Rise of the Beasts trailer revealed quite a bit about what to expect from the new Transformer movie story, and which aspects of Beast Wars the movie will borrow from. Unlike the source material, which was set on an extraterrestrial world, Rise of the Beasts moves the franchise to 1994, which puts it between Bumblebee and Michael Bay’s Transformers movies. According to comments from the cast and the director, In the Heights star Anthony Ramos will play Noah, a family man and “ex-military electronics expert” based in Brooklyn, while Fishback’s character is Elena, an artifact researcher. Somehow, Noah and Elena will cross paths with the Transformers.

Related: Is Rise Of The Beasts Part Of Michael Bay’s Transformers Universe?

Beast Wars centered on a new incarnation of the fan-favorite Optimus Prime through Optimus Primal, but Rise of the Beasts will be heading in a slightly different direction. The new film will shine the spotlight on the Prime that audiences already know from Bay’s films, while also incorporating the gorilla-inspired Primal at the same time (just not as the lead character). As for Prime, his Rise of the Beasts story will explore his first experience on Earth and his evolution into the Autobot leader fans know him to be in the existing installments. Also returning for Rise of the Beasts are Bumblebee, Revenge of the Fallen’s Arcee, and Dark of the Moon’s Mirage, with all three getting makeovers for their next adventure.

During the Autobots’ trip to Earth, they will meet the Maximals, who were described by Cable as “prehistoric animals that traveled through time and space” to eventually land on Earth. Apparently, that’s how Primal will be brought into the story. Fighting beside him in the movie will be Rhinox, Airazor, and Cheetor, who all hail from the original 1990s cartoon. Thus far, there’s no confirmation on whether or not Rattrap, Tigatron, and the others will be involved.

The focus on prehistoric, animalistic Transformers is without a doubt the biggest departure from the franchise’s roots, but it’s not the only one. Another major change is that Megatron and his Decepticons won’t be the primary antagonists. Cable said that since the Autobots vs. Decepticons conflict has been “exhausted,” they’ll be moving on to the Terrorcons for Transformers 7, which were a small group of Predacons in the Beast Wars show. Their leader in this version of the story is lesser-known Transformers villain Scourge, who hasn’t been used in the live-action movies yet. What Scourge will be up to hasn’t been discussed, but it can be assured that the Autobots and the Maximals will have to work together to stop him.

Rise Of The Beasts Trailer Story Reveals

The Transformers: Rise of the Beasts trailer gives audiences a first look at the Autobots, Maximals, and Terrorcons — and it doesn’t disappoint in terms of action. Audiences are quickly thrown into narrative when the first scene reveals Optimus Prime meeting Optimus Primal, a giant armored gorilla voiced by Ron Perlman. Primal, in all of his Maximal-leading glory, tells Prime that there is an impending danger both from the past and the future. While it hasn’t been confirmed, it’s quite possible that the Maximals have also come from the future. Throughout the footage, audiences are introduced to these exciting new kinds of Transformers, who take on the image of animals, with designs both featured in Beast Wars and the original cartoon.

Related: All 5 Upcoming Transformers Movies Explained

Along with Optimus Prime, Bumblebee is shown to be back, and this time his design has been upgraded since his 2018 appearance. The trailer also introduces viewers to Anthony Ramos’ Noah, who will be taking on the all-important role of human ally, receiving the torch from Shia LaBeouf’s Sam Witwicky and Mark Wahlberg’s Yeager. He’s shown briefly throughout, with one scene depicting his “car” taking over and running from police. His car (really Noah’s Autobot partner Mirage, voiced by Pete Davidson), lives up to his namesake by creating decoy holograms to aid in escape. Various other Maximals and Autobots are shown in a state of action, showcasing the latest barrage of new Transformers, such as Cheetor, Airazor, Arcee, Rhinox, and Wheeljack.

Though the Decepticons are no longer in the villain role, the trailer reveals plenty of new Transformer villains, called the Terrorcons, in their absence. The orange-armored Battletrap appears to be facing off with the Autobots and the Maximals in the new clips, as does the franchise’s new big bad Scourge, who is shown taking on Bumblebee in a fight. Game of Thrones‘ Peter Dinklage will be lending his voice to the new villain, who seems to be quite a formidable antagonist. In the final moments of the trailer, audiences are introduced to Dominique Fishback’s Elena, who is simply in awe of the fact of how any of this can be real. All in all, the new Transformers movie story looks to be an exciting one, and Transformers 7 won’t disappoint when it comes to the action.

More: What Went Wrong With The Transformers Movies