- The Key and Peele star has already voiced roles for The Lego Movie and the new Transformers One film
- Key was speaking exclusively to Pubity on the red carpet at the Transformers One London premiere
- Key’s idea is similar to Pacific Rim
Keegan-Michael Key may already have two major ‘famous toy-turned-Hollywood movie’ roles under his belt with his voice work in The Lego Movie and upcoming Transformers One, but the Key and Peele star would like to bring another of his childhood favourites to the big screen.
Key, who leant his considerable voice credentials to the character of Foreman Jim in 2014’s Lego Movie and can now be heard as B-127 in the upcoming Transformers One film, spoke to Pubity on the red carpet of the Transformers London premiere last night (September 19). When the question was posed to the Emmy Award winner as to which of his favourite childhood toys would he most like to bring to life in Hollywood, Key had no hesitation with his answer.
“There was a toy that I had that I loved called Shogun Warriors,” Key began on his trip down memory lane, “And they only made them for a couple of years, they were clearly some kind of Japanese character and they had moveable arms and you could hit a button and the fists would shoot off.
“They had pellets you could shoot out, it was really cool. Huge health hazard, but I loved those toys. If I could make Shogun Warriors into a film, they remind me of Pacific Rim, that reminds me of it a little bit.”
Shogun Warriors were produced by Mattel in 1979 and 1980, based on Japanese anime mecha and were inspired by toys originally produced by Japanese company Popy. They could also transform, in some cases, with the character Raideen possessing the ability to transform into a birdlike spaceship. Which sounds cool as s**t, quite frankly. Given that this was 1979/80, it could be said that Shogun Warriors were a precursor to Transformers, which launched in ’84.
So, yeah, let Keegan-Michael Key run wild with this idea and give us a Shogun Warriors franchise, which then eventually crosses over with Transformers and he voices every character. Then give us a billion dollars for having this idea.
Transformers One serves as the franchise’s first animated feature since 1986’s The Transformers: The Movie. Alongside Key, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Steve Buscemi, Laurence Fishburne, Jon Hamm and Brian Tyree Henry also star. The film focuses on the origins and early relationship between Optimus Prime and Megatron and how they changed the fate of Cybertron, the home planet of the Transformers.
The film hits theatres in the US today and has so far received positive reviews from critics and fans alike.
