It was revealed back in March that Paramount Pictures is looking at expanding the Transformers cinematic universe. Previously, I Am Legend‘s Akiva Goldsman signed on to work with Michael Bay, Steven Spielberg, and Lorenzo di Bonaventura to create a franchise writer’s room to develop both sequels and spinoff features. Deadline now reveals that that writer’s room today has five new high-profile additions in the form of “The Walking Dead” and “Invincible” creator Robert Kirkman, the Iron Man writing pair of Art Marcum and Matt Holloway, “Fringe” and “Lost” scribe Jeff Pinkner, and X-Men: The Last Stand and The Incredible Hulk‘s Zak Penn.
Last year, Paramount released the franchise’s fourth film, Transformers: Age of Extinction, starring Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz and Jack Reynor. When asked if he’d be back for a sequel, Wahlberg previously stated that he’s contracted for “a couple more.” It is also believed that Bay himself will return to helm Transformers 5 after he completes work on his Benghazi drama 13 Hours. That film, is set to star Pablo Schreiber, John Krasinski, James Badge Dale, David Denman, Max Martini and Dominic Fumusa and is based on Mitchell Zuckoff”s nonfiction account of the 2012 terrorist attack on the US State Department Special Mission Compound in Benghazi, Libya.
Age of Extinction grossed over $1 billion at the global box office with all four films combined grossing over $3.7 billion.