Transformers: Anthony Hopkins Calls Director Michael Bay A Genius

Sir Anthony Hopkins is one of the most renowned actors in the entire world.


Throughout his storied career, Hopkins has portrayed many famous characters in productions such the Silence of the Lambs, the Elephant Man, Amistad, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. And the award-winning actor has worked alongside many acclaimed director’s in the field, such as Jonathan Demme, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, Julie Taymor, and Darren Aronofsky.

So you might have been scratching your head a bit when he followed up his fan-favorite turn on Westworld by signing up for Transformers: The Last Knight.

When Yahoo! asked the actor last week at CinemaCon why he’s joining the toy-based franchise for its latest installment, Hopkins gave a pretty interesting answer.

“I thought, ‘[Michael Bay]’s a genius, he really is,’” Hopkins said. “He’s the same ilk as Oliver Stone and [Steven] Spielberg and [Martin] Scorsese. Brilliance. Savants, really, they are. He’s a savant.”

UP NEXT: Bumblebee Spinoff Will Be Prequel, Enter Production Soon

Well, that’s probably the first time anyone has said that out loud with such confidence—at the least someone who isn’t related to the Transformers director.

Hopkins agreed to participate in The Last Knight after meeting with Bay over breakfast one day. He said he enjoyed the first two films when he saw them prior to the opportunity, and when the actor agreed he went back and watched the latest films.

“[They are] terrific,” Hopkins said. “They’re created by a genius.”

People might not agree but they cannot deny the fact that these films are immensely successful. They tend to open to huge box office numbers across the globe, even if their domestic hauls might be found a bit lacking.

The worldwide appeal of Transformers is almost immeasurable and its unlikely we’ve seen the last of the franchise after the next film—Bay has said himself that there are 14 more stories in the works with a Bumblebee spinoff nearing the production phase.

Transformers: The Last Knight opens in theaters June 23.

Are you excited for Hopkins’ collaboration with the genius of Michael Bay? Let us know with your vote in the Anticipation Rankings below!

More Transformers: The Last Knight: Michael Bay Would Direct A Spinoff Film / Michael Bay Says There Are 14 New Transformers Stories In Development / The First Reactions to Transformers: The Last Knight / Michael Bay Reveals What Kept Him From Leaving Transformers / Trailer

Transformers: The Last Knight shatters the core myths of the Transformers franchise, and redefines what it means to be a hero. Humans and Transformers are at war, Optimus Prime is gone. The key to saving our future lies buried in the secrets of the past, in the hidden history of Transformers on Earth. Saving our world falls upon the shoulders of an unlikely alliance: Cade Yeager (Wahlberg); Bumblebee; an English Lord (Hopkins); and an Oxford Professor (Haddock).

The cast of Transformers: The Last Knight features Mark Wahlberg (Planet of the Apes) as Cade Yeager, Isabela Moner (100 Things To Do Before High School) as Izabella, Josh Duhamel (Life as We Know It) as Lieutenant Colonel William Lennox, John Turturro (The Big Lebowski) as Seymour Simmons, and Tyrese Gibson (Furious 7) as Robert Epps, as well as Jerrod Carmichael (Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising), Anthony Hopkins (Thor: The Dark World). The voice cast includes Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime and John Goodman (10 Cloverfield Lane) as Hound.