The ongoing affair with the Transformers film franchise is a long and sordid one for moviegoers. Originally kicked off by director Michael Bay, the live-action films adapt the stories created from the classic vehicles-into-robots toyline from Hasbro in which the righteous Autobots face off against the evil Decepticons in intergalactic warfare.
In rare form, the first few films were lambasted by both fans and critics, with Bay’s directing style coming under harsh (albeit deserved) scrutiny.
Later films in the franchise would see marked improvements over their predecessors, thanks in no small part to Bay staying out of the director’s chair. However, it’s hard to forget the series’ humble beginnings as a style-over-substance disaster rife with plot inconsistencies and glaring product placement.
Of course, few know the sting of the early Transformers movies better than Megan Fox, who was removed from her starring role after only two films. What prompted her to get fired?
Megan Fox called out Michael Bay while filming ‘Transformers’ and got fired.
Although Megan began acting as early as 2001, she received her breakout role in 2007’s Transformers. She portrayed Mikaela Banes, a young girl with mechanical skills and the love interest of the main protagonist Sam Witwicky (Shia LeBeouf). Megan later reprised her role in the second film, Revenge of the Fallen, which came out in 2009.
After that, though, she was notably absent from the rest of the franchise as it churned out disappointment after disappointment.
Despite the films’ negative reception from both critics and fans, Megan’s performance in Transformers set her on the path to popularity. But even in her breakthrough role, Megan wasn’t exactly having a great time on set. What’s more, she made that known to the public.
In a notorious 2009 interview with Wonderland Magazine, Megan called out Bay for his tyrannical and misogynistic directing style, having actively Sєxualized her on set.
“He wants to be like Hitler on his sets, and he is,” she told the outlet. “So he’s a nightmare to work for.”
As far as her notes from Bay went, she was often told to just “Be H๏τ” or “Just be Sєxy” when filming for the Transformers films.
Unfortunately, these comments reportedly didn’t blow over well with much of the cast and crew, least of all Transformers film producer Steven Spielberg.
Megan was subsequently fired from the third Transformers movie, with Bay claiming in a GQ interview that it was at Spielberg’s behest. Spielberg would later deny these claims. In later years, Megan would second-guess making the comments at all, although it’s difficult not to take her word for it given Bay’s penchant for blatantly objectifying young girls in many of his films.
Luckily, Megan has managed to maintain a steady career after Transformers. She would even cross paths with Bay once more on the set of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles live-action films in which she starred and Bay produced.
However, it’s hard to say whether or not she dodged a bullet with the live-action Transformers films between their unsavory reputation and box office success.