Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson to star in animated Transformers prequel

The first animated Transformers movie in almost 40 years has been announced – and it’s filled with all-star talent.

Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson are just two of the names that will lead Transformers One, a prequel about the eternal war between the Autobots and the Decepticons.

As revealed at CinemaCon, Hemsworth is playing a young Optimus Prime, while fellow Marvel alumni Johansson is Cybertron warrior Elita. Rounding out the cast is Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron, Keegan Michael-Key as Bumblebee, Jon Hamm as Sentinel Prime, and Laurence Fishburne as Alpha Trion. Toy Story 4 director Josh Cooley will helm the project, which is set for release on July 19, 2024.

"I’m so excited and proud to be working with Hasbro and eOne to bring the first animated Transformers movie in almost 40 years to theaters for a never-before-told story," Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation president Ramsey Naito told the crowd at the Las Vegas convention (via Variety).

Naito added of his cast, "I’m honored to have such incredible talents come together to portray these well-known and much-loved characters in an origin story at the heart of the franchise."

A new Transformers movie, Rise of the Beasts, is hitting cinemas on June 9. Starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, the seventh live-action entry in the series sees the Autobots cross paths with the Maximals, Terrorcons, and Predacons.

Rise of the Beast’s director Steven Caple Jr. and producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura highlighted one of the Terrorcons – Peter Dinklage’s Scourge – in an interview in the new issue of Total Film.

"I like to pour a lot into the villains. I like to make them layered and dimensional," Caple Jr. said. Di Bonaventura added: "He really has no purpose in life other than destruction."

For more on what’s hitting cinemas this year, check out our guide to upcoming movies.