Global Consumer Conference 2015 is taking place today and Hasbro just finished their presentation few moments ago. As usual TFW2005 has the event covered for you.
Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner was more than happy to discuss what the company has in store (literally) for us in the future.
Key points discussed:
- Upcoming Transformers toylines and entertainment.
- Tidbits from Transformers Cinematic Universe.
- Spinoff movies to focus around Bumblebee and other characters.
- More TF Comic Books, TV Series, Video Games planned.
- A secret Animatronic toyline planned for the future.
- Plans for the Star Wars series.
- New Frozen toyline by Hasbro and the success of My Little Pony.
Check out our full report, after the jump. Make sure to stick with TFW2005 as we bring you the best coverage around when it comes to Transformers content from BotCon 2015 and SDCC 2015. We are happy to say that Hasbro is enjoying a good success with their toylines and is looking forward to their new Disney licensing rights. Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner mentioned that there will be more Star Wars content in the next 5 years than what was seen in the past 30 years.
Hasbro will be revealing a whole new Frozen toyline in Early 2016. Hasbro is really happy about how My Little Pony franchise is performing at the moment as well.
Speaking to the audience, Brian Goldner mentioned that there is a fluid play pattern when it comes to Transformers. He mentioned that there is a connection between Physical Play and Digital Play with Transformers Video Games and Transformers Mobile Games. This play pattern is dubbed as Phygital.
Mr. Goldner mentioned that plans are underway for the upcoming Transformers movies in the Transformers Cinematic Universe.
“Last year was Transformers 4. It was quite a good success for us last year” said Brian Goldner. “We’ve begun to work with writers and we are now developing the Transformers [Cinematic] Universe beyond the first four movies. And we are continuing to have Television [programs] on the air with Cartoon Network where Transformers is performing quite well in the first quarter coming off of a movie year”.
Continuing on about the TFCU:
“As we go forward, we would imagine several more Transformers Movies. Not just in the current lineage but also spinoffs and focusing on certain key characters that a beloved by the world over. Many of you know Bumblebee; the yellow Camaroformally known as a yellow VW Bug and he is a beloved character by kids all over the world. We could see stories told around Bumblebee and other characters. We are in a process of building the brand equity around the Comic Book Business, our TV Business, our Digital Gaming Business and adding to that our new movie business of Transformers”.
He also mentioned the partnership with Paramount regarding the Transformers Franchise.
“We don’t pay to produce the Transformers Movies. For us it’s really a reputational risk, it’s not a financial risk. Obviously they (Paramount) performed incredibly well”.Furthermore he mentioned the relationship with Marvel while having a big franchise (Transformers) of their own.
“Well, we’ve been building Transformers for 10 years. It was out first movie property.” said Mr. Goldner. “In our conversations I don’t see that they (other companies such as Marvel) are reproaching. We treat their brands with much respect and effort as our own brands. That’s the true testiment of a Brand Partner. We are a great Brand Owner and as a result [of that] we also know how to manage other people’s brands who are great Brand Owners. We know what it take to make great Brand Effort with toys and games. We put our best effort and great resources into making Marvel Business and Lucas Business. We put an incredible effort into making a wonderful line of products”.
Finally Mr. Goldner mentioned that Hasbro is in development of a fully Animatronic toyline. Details of the line are kept in secret and mentioned that the debut will come later in the future. We believe that this may not necessarily be for Transformers. But there was a slight hint about it.
DOTM Bumblebee
I gave no praise towards the movies themselves, I'm simply pointing out that Hasbro wouldn't be able to make releases like Generations and US Masterpieces without the money they get from the movies.
You seem to think I have no concept of chronology. Yes, the movies wouldn't exist without G1, but the franchise wouldn't be as successful without the movies. The Combiner Wars are inspired by G1 and IDW, but it's highly unlikely Hasbro would be able to afford to make those lines (especially after the budget cuts in 2011/2012) without the movies.
I can safely say that RID2015 is keeping me entertained just fine, just as Prime did before. Have fun generalizing other fans for not completely hating the Michael Bay Transformers movies when the next one comes out
Fair point, but Universe/Generations are still a product of the success of the movies.
I'm sure there's a difference between a line based on nostalgia being popular and a company having enough money to continue said line based on nostalgia as well as two other lines based on recent adaptations.
Your comments about the movies are nothing more than an opinion. If it were a fact that the designs were terrible and all the Transformers were out of character, everyone would agree with you. As it stands, I like the designs for the most part, and I know people who do. As for the characters, I've seen people who hate the movies admit to at least a handful of characters being in character. Do I think the movies are perfect? No. Do I enjoy them? Yes and no, depending on which one we're talking about. Am I thankful we have them? Yes, because without them, I probably wouldn't have gotten interested in the franchise enough to become a part of the fandom, and I wouldn't enjoy watching Generation One and Transformers' many other adaptations today.
Automaster
I can't imagine a prequel where there are no earth modes. We're mostly in agreement that Cybertron only modes as far as the movie series goes, just suck and don't look like anything.
KnightPrime
Why a spinoff movie about Bee? We've all had enough of him. Why not a prequel on cybertron, a movie from the decepticon's prespective, a spinoff about the dinobots, spinoff about the wreckers, a story about some of the decepticons who never got a chance to shine *shockwave*soundwave, why not a movie about ultra magnus, rodimus, the seekers, anything BUT BUMBLEBEE!!!!
jestermon
No, Takara designs them Hasbro makes their own versions they are never the exact same as the Japanese version.
Hasbro allocates their funds to what they wan to make in the US.
Steevy Maximus
I never said it wasn't, but it did so much BETTER thanks to the infusion of pop culture attention (much less the financial rewards) the movies (and their success) have brought to the brand. As to your examples? Most of those side lines were dead or dying by the time the movie came out:
Alternators was at its end (the final two molds being Walmart exclusive)
Beast Wars Classics was a limited line which seemed to have limited success (I know many of the local stores I had didn't stock the line at all)
Titanium was dead (again, final large molds being retailer exclusive, and the only the smaller figurines managed to hang on through the movie)
Reissues were dead in 2005 (barring the occasional Optimus)
Masterpieces were "once every couple years", not "several per year" like now.
Star Wars Transformers would phase out the Transformers branding by 2008 (and wouldn't bring that branding back until 2011)
Hasbro/Fun Pub EXPLICITLY stated the entire reason the Botcon 2007 set was done was because Hasbro had "no plans" in early 2007 to continue Classics as a dedicated line. Hasbro didn't plan to introduce Universe 2 until AFTER the movie came out and store shelves were wiped clean.
Hasbro doesn't do "all movie all the time" because Paramount DOES get a cut from those products, and if you don't remember, Transformers 2007 toys were SOLD OUT for most of the summer and early fall of 2007 due to popularity.
The movies were the spark, and Hasbro cultivated that spark into a fire. But without that spark, it is doubtful we would have gotten as much as quickly as we have.
Yes it does. If a product is selling extremely well, should a company not capitalize?
What reasoning are you talking about? Would a Classics (or similar line) have happened without the movies? Almost certainly.
But would it have came as soon and continued so aggressively without the movies?
This is my favorite image Hasbro has ever released:
And how is that relevant to my point?
Regardless opinion, clearly somebody seems to like them with the last 3 being billion dollar grossing films, and despite the underwhelming performance of Age of Extinction (to us anyway), the core lines (RiD2 and Generations) aren't slowing down from what I see.
Before the movies, Transformers was that 80s cartoon and toys people vaguely remember (regardless the brand's continued success from Beast Wars until the movie)
I don't disagree with that, and I think it is clearly obvious the brand has lost some of the luster since the first film. And I think this Paramount "think tank" has its work cut out if they REALLY want to try and salvage something from cluster-eff of a continuity the current movies are sitting in.
kaijuguy19
Yes the franchise was doing on it's own back then before the movies but there's also some things to consider. First off G1 was the first ever fiction to come out of the franchise because it was among the first toylines in the 80's to try soemthing new at the time so of course not a lot of TF series and lines are going to measure up to it since we're so used to it by then. Second of all, the franchise isn't just about G1. It's also about the series that came after it that also made their mark in it's history like how the Beast era saved the franchise for example,and how the first RID series got back a ton of fans back to it. G1 is important and famous no denying that but we shouldn't forget about the series after it that also did their share of awesome things.
Finally even if we didn't get the movies there's no guarantee that it would be for the better either. Sure it wouldn't be at the levels of the type of slump G.I Joe's going through but I doubt it'll be as successful as they are now into surviving in a time where kids are more interested in electronic devices more then toys. Things aren't what like they used to be last decade.
Didn't the Beast Era,RID,and Unicron Trilogy already did the whole taking names,couple of design cues and personality quirks thing already though? Because then they're just as guilty as the movies for doing this. So why do we solely condem the movies for doing it?
There's still fans out there who do care about where the movies are going and they're always aware that there's room for improvement. Not everyone's going to share the same viewpoints as you.
Also even if the movies reboot entirely and be more G1 in everything that doesn't mean it won't make it's share of flaws that may not be any different and that not everyone's going to like the reboot.
Autobot Burnout
Just want to point out that the Unicron Trilogy – specifically Cybertron – was pretty profitable so the franchise wasn't hurting in terms of profitability.
Additionally, the movie was originally planned for 2006 release, not 2007. I don't know the reason why the film was delayed, but that led to the first Classics line being pure filler. But movie toys were already in development and production in 2006 – that's the year printed on my Movie Landmine despite him not even being in the pre-AllSpark power offerings.
Afterburner
You have this quite backwards. First of all, TF was doing quite fine before the movies, Cybertron was a HUGE line with lots of figures, we had Alternators, we had Beast Wars Classics, we had Titanium, we had Reissues, we had Star Wars Transformers, we had Masterpiece, all kinds of stuff on the shelves at the same time. Classics as a filler line, maybe, but they would not have continued Classics (still going) if it wasn't specifically well performing. They would just do more and more movie toys. If you hadn't noticed, you can still get plenty of AOE figures anywhere. So something more than just the movies is going on here.
Hasbro takes profits and does whatever it wants with them, including keeping them and paying dividends. High sales of movie lines does not have to equal more TFs, better TFs, anything. This is never a guarantee at all, and not how business works. They will take the profits and decide where it is most profitable for them to allocate and invest for the future. There are tons of variables at play.
Did the movies take it up a notch? Sure. But we would and could have easily sustained Classics and the rest without them – WE WERE ALREADY DOING THIS. In fact, Classics was yet another line people with this same line of reasoning said couldn't be done. Then it sold like crazy.
Despite the movies' success, the line still did not reach G1 levels of popularity. TF will forever be known as and defined by G1, because that is what TF is. It can NEVER outrun it no matter how many mute muscle car Bumblebee's they try to throw at it.
There is nothing wrong with updating and adapting, but that is not what the movies did. They took names, a couple of design cues here and there, a couple of personality quirks here and there, and said here we go. It was a complete reinvention – if it wasn't for Optimus, they could have called that movie "Robot Wars" and changed everybody's names and nobody would have ever known it had anything to do with TF.
This is the root problem – we are not getting TF movies. Then the real slap in the face is despite all of these changes, we aren't even getting good movies or cool designs either. Ugly designs, terrible movies.
At some point, people WILL stop giving these a chance. See Batman & Robin and billions of other examples. TF is actually very popular at it's core, and doesn't get enough recognition for that. It is VERY POPULAR. But that was the case before the movies as well. That will only take it so far though. At some point, they need to give people a reason to keep caring. Right now, there is zero.
These movies made it on name recognition and admittedly amazing effects and action direction. But at the end of the day, they don't stack up to where cinema is today. If you really want the brand to last, it is time they start making fiction like adults and not demented children.
Autovolt 127
I have to agree with this.
Though I can say I usually enjoy Transformers more during the non-movie years.
Steevy Maximus
I don't see him doing ANY praise for the films, just stating a very real fact. Regardless one's opinion of the films, they are very much responsible for the explosive growth we've seen over the past ten years.
Hasbro's investment into its brands are tied directly to how they performed prior, so the movies are very much responsible for the increased output Hasbro produces for the brand.
And remember that Classics itself was produced in response to the first movie's schedule change from Christmas 06 to summer 07. And as a filler line, Hasbro didn't intend to continue it after the movie (hence the infamous Botcon 07 Seeker set). Classics/Universe only continued because of how successful thef film was and the ensuing increased retailer demand for more Transformers product.
OMEGAPRIME1983
I want good toys again…
YoungPrime
Please spare us your onesighted praise of Bay's garbage.
Hasbro spreads money around so I could sooner thank My Little Pony or Easy Bake Oven's for the Classics line's initial run. (you know, since Bayformers wasn't even out then)
Fact: If it wasn't for the G1 element that movie franchise would never have come to be in existence, not the other way around. Check off one more reason not to take some fans seriously. The CW line is highly successful despite that forgettable abomination they claim to be Devastator in the movie. And that's credit to G1 and IDW.
So like I said, enjoy the Bayless seasons while you all can. I certainly will.
BladeStorm
Please, no more Bumblebee. What is this fascination with focussing in on him by the movies?
Now please don't get me wrong because I love the little yellow guy but he's already been the focus… move on, give us more team stories (with very little humans involved) and lots of great characters that at least interact with each other.
Roufuss
Masterpiece figures are Takara, so this is a bit untrue. Hasbro does nothing other than slap them in a big ugly box.
Steevy Maximus
Giant alien transforming robots come to Earth to continue their war for survival/domination/freedom.
Seems like we got that.
Optimus Prime (disambiguation – Transformers Wiki)
Megatron (disambiguation) – Transformers Wiki
Bumblebee (disambiguation) – Transformers Wiki
Which flavor are you referring to?
Yes, because Robots in Disguise (2000), Energon and Cybertron were sterling examples of compelling story and characterizations.
But if "they looked like who they are supposed to be", then why would they have a trillion jagged parts?
I'm not saying I don't want a really good TF movie, but I think some need to keep a bit of perspective on where the brand has been for a majority of its existence, even before the films.
Afterburner
They have made money on the pop culture popularity of TF, which has always carried more popularity and longevity than any other 80's toyline outside of Star Wars and TMNT. They have made money on what ILM can do. It's pretty impressive.
But at some point, we would like to see an actual TF movie. Actual TF designs, actual TF voices, actual TF storylines. Actual good storytelling and characterization.
I think most of us probably don't even care anymore if they have a trillion jagged parts to them as long as they look like who they are supposed to be. No more cliched redesigns, no more ugly Camaros, no more flames on the wrong Prime. No more dreadlocks, balls, baby eyes, spit, mullets, or beer belly's. TF has its root in Japanese super robots, like it or not, and they should start to resemble something along those lines and not the uncreative monsters we always get for designs here in the US. No ape jets, no cow trucks.
But it will all be too much to ask because there is a constant problem that can't go away – Hasbro's involvement and the Producers involvement. DiBonaventura, Goldner, Bay, etc just don't get it and don't care to ever get it, so we're screwed unless someone in this writers circle and the next director stand up and fight for what TF really is.
Don't count on it. And by the time they are done, TF will have no capital left to spare, and will be known as stupid forevermore.
rapid_fire
awesome, our heroic leader of the Autobots gets shoved to the side for the one that can't even talk.
Railguard
One thing they have never really touched on and I'm afraid to mntion it but the early years on cybertron before the war. The events leading up to it then the war and the ultimate decision to leave. I mean think about it the autobots got their asses handed to them back then and how many primes and decepticon leaders did they go through? Yes they have tried to tell he story before in comics and video games but it would be nice to see a true tf movie with characters we haven't seen before telling the story from the beginning that leads to the original story line from the eighties. At least it would tie in a huge story but it would not support anything done from the bay films and his floating cube or films made for money purposes. Oh well I'll just keep my story going.
Autovolt 127
I agree and I hope so. Hasbro and Transformers could save a little face.
A Drift movie could maybe work. If it's based on the The Transformers: Drift mini-series, but not as a straight adaptation of course.
Yes that's been brought up and please no.
They make a lot of money as is but the respect and admiration….that would be rewarding in on itself.