Despite becoming a box-office flop upon its release, Brad Pitt’s Fight Club has stood the test of time, becoming one of the most influential releases from David Fincher. However, its impact isn’t just limited to the viewers, as director Steven Caple Jr. too took inspiration from the action thriller for the 2023 Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.
For his reimagination of the popular IP, the director filmmaker incorporated Pete Davidson into the feature, whose character took major inspiration from Pitt’s Tyler Durden.
Brad Pitt’s Tyler Durden Influenced Pete Davidson’s Mirage
After The Last Knight‘s disappointing box-office collection, which led to Michael Bay‘s departure, Steven Caple Jr. was brought in for the next mainline entry, and he had some big shoes to fill. But instead of following in the footsteps of the Bay’s The Last Knight, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts served as a prequel to 2007’s Transformers and the 2018’s standalone feature Bumblebee.
With the story focusing on a more young Optimus Prime, the film also saw Pete Davidson starring as Mirage, the newest sidekick in the franchise. For his character, Steven Caple Jr took inspiration from Brad Pitt‘s Tyler Durden, following the fluidity and the unpredictable nature of his character.
VFX Supervisor Gary Brozenich revealed (IndieWire):
The first thing that Steven referred me to was the Tyler Durden character from ‘Fight Club.’ Slightly schizophrenic. You never know what he’s going to say. He’s probably going to say something inappropriate. But he’s really kind of a nice guy. He’s the friend that you wanna have but you don’t always wanna have around.
But following Davidson’s improv, Mirage became even more unpredictable in the final output, making him much more different than Tyler Durden.
A New Standalone Transformers Feature Is in the Works
While Rise of the Beasts became the lowest-grossing live-action Transformers movie, this hasn’t impacted the studio’s plans to expand the IP in the coming years. Apart from the upcoming animated prequel, starring Chirs Hemsworth and a potential Transformers/G.I. Joe crossover movie, another live-action Transformers entry is currently in the works.
Similar to Bumblebee, this will be a standalone entry, led by Blue Beetle director Ángel Manuel Soto. But per producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, they’re still waiting for the script to be done.
We’re waiting for the script is where we’re going. Thank you for asking. We don’t know yet, so we have to read a script. We don’t have one yet.
With multiple Transformers installments in the oven, it’s not a bad time to be a fan of the franchise, which might finally regain momentum in the coming years.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is available to stream on Paramount Plus.
