Is Unicron the Transformers Movie Version of Marvel’s Thanos?

Warning: Transformers 5 Spoilers Follow!

Transformers: The Last Knight introduces a lot of new characters to the Transformers movie franchise, but none of them is bigger (literally) or more anticipated than Unicron.

Now that Unicron has been introduced to the Transformers movie universe (more on that later), it seems as though the franchise is starting down a path towards a major storyline involving the character. In The Last Knight, we only got introductory brushstrokes to Unicron, which raises the question of just how slow of a rollout the filmmakers have planned for the character.

Now that the Transformers movie universe has been widely expanded by the events of The Last Knight, it’s easy to compare it to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in terms of how the franchise is being built. Since just about every studio wants to rip a page out of Marvel Studios’ playbook, these days, we have to wonder:

Is Unicron the Transformers Movie Version of Marvel’s Thanos?

Who Is Unicron?

Transformers: The Last Knight introduces Quintessa, the supposed Cybertonian Goddess of Life. Early on in the film, Quintessa captures Optimus Prime and transforms him into an evil alter-ego, Nemesis Prime, with a mission to lead her to Earth. It is revealed that Earth, itself, is a Transformer – one that Quintessa identifies as the malevolent Transformers God, Unicron. 

According to Quintessa, Unicron has the energy that (if siphoned) can restore Cybertron to its prime state (no pun), instead of the desolate wasteland it’s become. Even though Quintessa fails in her plot to leave Earth depleted and crumbling, a post-credits scene reveals that she is still on Earth hiding out, disguised as a human woman, plotting to kill Unicron once and for all. 

The connection between Earth/Unicron and Cybertron/Quintessa is going to be the main thrust of the Transformers sequels (at least Transformers 6, and probably 7, as well.

More: Transformers Unicron Explained

The Thanos Connection

If you’ve been watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe films then you know that, when Avengers: Infinity War is released in 2018, it will mark a six-year wait from the time that Marvel fans first saw Thanos teased at the end of The Avengers, to when Marvel Studios ultimate big bad finally steps onto the battlefield of Infinity War. In that sense, Marvel has truly redefined expectations for what movie audiences expect from a villain – or how long they can wait for a storyline to payoff. 

The question now, is: how closely will the Transformers franchise try to copy the Marvel Cinematic Universe? 

Clearly, the Transformers filmmakers aren’t in a rush to roll Unicron out (pun). It’s taken five films to even introduce the villain, when many fans wanted to see him in Transformers 2 or 3. Even when we finally saw Unicron in Transformers 5, it was just a tease. It’s hard to say for sure, but Transformers 6 definitely doesn’t have to jump full-on into a Unicron story, if the franchise wants to mine more out of the build up.

A slow burn arc to an epic Unicron story is something that fans might definitely support – rather than seeing the Transformers films grind up another iconic figure and spit him out all half-cooked and ridiculous (see also: Devastator, Jetfire, Hot Rod, Soundwave, etc…). The ball is now in the court of the filmmakers, and if they’ve truly learned anything from Marvel, they’ll do it right, rather than doing it fast. 

More Transformers News

MORE Transformers News:

• Transformers 5 Official Review
• Why Transformers Fans Should Be Excited For The Franchise Expansion
• New Secret Transformers History Revealed in Transformers 5
• How Transformers 5 Connects to the Previous Films
• How Unicron’s Reveal Sets up Transformers 6
• The Big Change to Bumblebee in Transformers 5
• Does Nemesis Prime Appear in Transformers 5?
• Transformers 5’s Unicron Explained
• The Big Twist In the Transformers Origin Story
• Transformers 5 Is the Worst Reviewed Movie in the Franchise
• Who Dies in Transformers 5?
• Transformers 5 Post-Credits Scene Explained

Transformers: The Last Knight is now in theaters.

Transformers: The Last Knight is directed by Michael Bay. The film stars Mark Wahlberg and Stanley Tucci reprising their roles from Transformers: Age of Extinction, with Josh Duhamel, and John Turturro reprising roles from the first three Transformers movies.

Transformers: The Last Knight’s voice cast includes Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, John Goodman as Hound, and John DiMaggio as Crosshairs. Other transformers appearing the film include Bumblebee, Drift, Hot Rod, Cogman, Canopy, Sqweeks, Grimlock, Megatron, Barricade, Onslaught, Hooligan, and Mohawk.