Summary

• The Transformers live-action timeline is complex with events pre-dating creation, best watched in chronological order starting with Bumblebee.
• Transformers: Rise of the Beasts expands lore with Maximals and Terrorcons, introducing new robot characters and setting up a new trilogy.
• Each movie in the live-action Transformers timeline builds upon the previous, introducing new challenges and alliances for Autobots and Decepticons.

The timeline in the live-action Transformers movies that Michael Bay started, The Seven Primes (the first Cybertronians) sought to harvest the energy of stars.

When one of them (The Fallen) violated the rule of attempting to use a harvester to destroy a planet with life, he was stopped by the Primes and had the Matrix of Leadership hidden from him. These events would begin the live-action Transformers timeline, whose events are easier to recount using an Earth calendar. From the first Bay movie to Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, it's best to watch these films in chronological order, starting with director Travis Knight's, Bumblebee.

Bumblebee (2018)

Takes Place In 1987

The first live-action Transformers movie in the timeline is 2018's Bumblebee, which takes place in the late 1980s. During the final days of the Autobot and Decepticon war on Cybertron, Optimus Prime saw his side was on the verge of losing. Prime felt that the Autobots needed to leave the planet to ensure their survival. The iconic Transformer Bumblebee, a.k.a. B-127, was sent to planet Earth by Optimus who hoped to take refuge there and establish a base of operations.

Bumblebee was praised by the Autobot leader Optimus Prime, who later reunited with his scout on Earth, having done a great job at defending the planet as tasked.

Crash-landing on Earth in the year 1987, Bumblebee quickly ran into trouble with Sector 7, a secret American government agency that handled extraterrestrial threats. But after escaping from Decepticon Blitzwing, Bumblebee later met teenager Charlie Watson, disguised as her 18th birthday present — a 1967 Volkswagen Beetle.

Decepticons Shatter and Dropkick were alerted to Bumblebee's location on Earth after Charlie unknowingly activated a homing signal on the robot. Teaming up with Sector 7, the two Decepticons made it their sole mission to capture Bumblebee. After managing to fend off the opposing force, Bumblebee parted ways with Charlie, who believed the Autobot would serve a greater purpose elsewhere. Late in the film, Bumblebee was praised by the Autobot leader Optimus Prime, who later reunited with his scout on Earth, having done a great job at defending the planet as tasked.

Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts (2023)

Takes Place In 1994

Partially based on the animated Beast Wars: Transformers, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts takes place in the year 1994, just seven years after the events in Bumblebee. However, it also holds the spot as the live-action Transformers movie that includes some of the earliest events in the timeline in its opening scenes. That is because the Maximals came from the future, but when Unicron came to destroy their planet, they traveled back in time and took shelter on a prehistoric Earth. They remained there until 1994 when the Terrorcons arrived with Unicron seeking to destroy another world.

Rise of the Beasts expands the lore while also acting as the start of a new Transformers trilogy.

The story in Rise of the Beasts centers around the Terrorcons attacking, led by Scourge, and the Maximals and Autobots forced to team up to save the Earth from the attack. There are also new humans in Noah, a struggling ex-military electronics expert, and Elena Wallace, an artifact researcher at a museum. A handful of new robot characters make their first live-action appearance, including Scourge, Optimus Primal, and the first real appearance of Unicron. Set in Brooklyn, Rise of the Beasts expands the lore while also acting as the start of a new Transformers trilogy.

Transformers (2007)

Takes Place In 2007

Fast-forward thirteen years, Michael Bay's first Transformers film took place in the early summer of 2007, the same year it was released. Teenager Sam Witwicky was in need of a hot new set of wheels to impress his crush, Mikaela Banes. After purchasing a 1976 Chevrolet Camaro that was actually Autobot, Bumblebee, Sam's life turned upside down.

This was when Captain Archibald Witwicky (Sam's great-great-grandfather) and his team of explorers encountered a comatose Megatron out in the Arctic Circle frozen completely in ice.

Wanting to find the Allspark — the source of all Cybertronian life — the Autobots arrived on Earth, discovering there had been a Decepticon presence on the planet since 1897. This was when Captain Archibald Witwicky (Sam's great-great-grandfather) and his team of explorers encountered a comatose Megatron out in the Arctic Circle frozen completely in ice.

Autobot leader Optimus Prime sought to acquire Archibald's glasses, which had the location of the Allspark imprinted on them. The Decepticons were also after the glasses and hoped to use the Allspark to eliminate the Autobots and rule the universe. But with the help of the American military, Prime and his team managed to defeat their Decepticon opponents. The ending of the movie saw Sam Witwicky kill Megatron using the Allspark's tremendous power and also helped set up a future relationship between the humans and the Autobots.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)

Takes Place In 2009

Set just two years after Michael Bay's first Transformers movie in the year 2009, its sequel — Revenge of the Fallen — saw the franchise get bigger and better. Back in 17,000 B.C., The Fallen, the original leader of the Decepticons, attempted to use a sun harvester — a machine capable of harnessing the energy of stars — to destroy Earth. Luckily, The Seven Primes (the first Cybertronians) foiled The Fallen's plans and managed to hide the Matrix of Leadership, the key to activating a sun harvester, from him.

Back in 17,000 B.C., The Fallen, the original leader of the Decepticons, attempted to use a sun harvester - a machine capable of harnessing the energy of stars - to destroy Earth.

Partnering with a newly-formed military unit called, NEST, the Autobots attempted to rid the planet of any remaining Decepticons. Meanwhile, after discovering a shard of the Allspark, college-student Sam Witwicky began seeing Cybertronian symbols which pointed to a new Energon source in Egypt. During an encounter with Megatron, Optimus Prime is killed while trying to save Sam, leading Witwicky and the Autobots to Egypt where they find the Matrix of Leadership in a secret tomb.

In the finale, Sam used the Matrix to restore life to Optimus who later destroyed a harvester constructed by The Fallen and then killed him, causing Megatron and his forces to retreat.

Transformers: Dark Of The Moon (2011)

Takes Place In 2011

Transformers: Dark of The Moon opened during the final days of the war on Cybertron and introduced the Ark, a transport ship that carried technology capable of ending the conflict. In 1961, it crash-landed on the moon. Years later during the Apollo 11 spaceflight, the vessel was discovered by humans who kept important details of the mission a secret.

The present day portion of the next Transformers movie takes place two years after Revenge of the Fallen.

The present day portion of the next Transformers movie takes place two years after Revenge of the Fallen. In the year 2011, Dark of the Moon saw Sam Witwicky struggling to find a job. After learning of the Ark's location on the moon, Optimus Prime and the Autobots traveled there and later revived Sentinel Prime — the Autobot leader prior to Optimus.

In a surprise trick, however, the Autobots learned they'd been set up by the Decepticons, who covertly partnered with a handful of sneaky human assets to make their mission of using a space bridge to bring Cybertron to Earth a reality. Aided by Sentinel, who betrayed the Autobots, the Decepticons laid waste to the city of Chicago where they planned to enact their evil plan. However, Optimus Prime and the Autobots managed to thwart the Decepticons' effort to conquer Earth yet again. In the film's finale, Sam reunited with his girlfriend, Carly Spencer, after both Megatron and Sentinel were killed by Optimus Prime.

Transformers: Age Of Extinction (2014)

Takes Place In 2018

In Michael Bay's fourth installment, Transformers: Age of Extinction, the live-action timeline got a little confusing. Sixty-five million years ago— even before the opening minutes of Revenge of the Fallen — an alien race called the "Creators" covered Earth and thousands of other planets with Seeds containing "Transformium," which turned all organic life into Transformers. Fast-forward five years after the Battle of Chicago in the year 2018, all Transformers — both Autobots and Decepticons — were viewed as a threat to humanity.

Cemetery Wind, a secret government task force, carried out a mission to eliminate the Transformers, while Autobot leader Optimus Prime crossed paths with struggling inventor, Cade Yaegar. The two partnered together, leading them on an adventure across the world where Prime and his allies repeatedly battled Lockdown and Galvatron (the revived version of Megatron). In the film's finale set in China, Optimus Prime managed to defeat Lockdown with the help of perhaps Transformers' silliest versions of robots, the Dinobots. After tasking his Autobot comrades to protect Cade and his family, Prime left planet Earth in search of his creators.

Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)

Takes Place In 2019

The final movie (so far) in the live-action Transformers timeline when it comes to the chronological order was director Michael Bay's fifth film, Transformers: The Last Knight. Back in Dark Ages England (484 AD), the Knights of Lacon — twelve legendary Cybertronian knights — allied with Merlin and King Arthur to defeat the Saxons. After receiving the Staff of Power, an ancient relic that belonged to the Decepticon sorceress, Quintessa, Merlin was told by the Knights of Lacon to hide it.

The Autobots met Sir Edmund Burton who explained the Transformers had been living on Earth for centuries.

Taking place one year after the events in Age of Extinction in 2019, the main story of Transformers: The Last Knight saw the humans hunting Transformers yet again, this time under a new task force called the TRF (Transformers Reaction Force). Brainwashed by Quintessa, Optimus Prime was instructed to find Merlin's staff to drain the Earth's energy and transfer it to Cybertron.

After escaping a Decepticon attack, Cade Yaegar and the Autobots met Sir Edmund Burton, who explained the Transformers had been living on Earth for centuries. While attempting to locate the Staff of Power, though, the team encountered Optimus Prime. But with the presence of a familiar face — Bumblebee — Prime's memories were restored, and the heroes defeated The Last Knight villain Quintessa. The Autobots returned to Cybertron to rebuild their homeworld.

The Future Of The Transformers Live-Action Timeline

The Next Movies Will Take Place After Rise Of The Beasts

The live-action Transformers franchise has been a lucrative one for Paramount, with even the worst of the series being successful at the box-office. It's no surprise that more movies are lined up after 2023's Rise of the Beasts, and it's been confirmed that Transformers 8 & 9 will be set after it. Transformers 8 was announced shortly after the release of Rise of the Beasts, showing just how ambitious the studio is for the new trilogy. Details are scarce, with everything from the cast to the plot to the director still a mystery.

While it's known that Transformers 8 and its sequel will take place after Rise of the Beasts, it's not known where they'll sit in the chronological timeline, as the most recent Transformers movie was the second in the in-universe canon. This means that the next live-action film could be set in the 1990s or early 2000s, taking place before 2007's Transformers. However, there is also every possibility that they could take place after Michael Bay's Transformers movies, working around them or ignoring them entirely to branch off into an entirely new timeline.

Then there's the mysterious yet highly anticipated Transformers and G.I. Joe crossover teased by the Rise of the Beasts post-credits scene. It's known that this crossover isn't going to be Transformers 8, but will be part of the canon timeline. This entry will most likely take place only shortly after Rise of the Beasts, as Burke offers Noah a job with G.I. Joe. Unless the crossover would feature Noah as an experienced G.I. Joe veteran, it would have to take place shortly after the most recent Transformers movie, and will likely sit between Rise of the Beasts and 2007's Transformers.