As if your eyes and ears could not possibly take anymore punishment, best get them rested. Michael Bay is in final negotiations to return to the "Transformers" series.Vulture reports that while the deal is not finalized, Paramount is not far from closing one that would bring Bay back for a new "cycle" of films.
Much of Paramount's bargaining challenge comes from another project Bay aims to direct called Pain and Gain, based on a series of articles chronicling the kidnapping of a Florida businessman at the hands of "dimwitted Miami bodybuilders." When the kidnapping goes wrong and the businessman is left for dead, he survives, only to hire a private investgator to hunt down his kidnappers. Dwayne Johnson and Mark Wahlberg have recently been attached to star. Bay's interest in this as a passion project seems to be playing a major role in bringing him back to the "Transformers" discussion.
Not long after the release of this summer's hit "Dark of the Moon," Bay had stated he was done with the series and happy with the films forming a trilogy. Obviously, given the money made off the last flick, Paramount felt differently and will continue to hammer the world with "Transformers" films. Getting Bay to return to the series looks to play a major role in their plans (for better or worse). Should this deal become final, Bay will likely go off and direct Pain and Gain before setting up work on Transformers 4 late next year. For the moment, it is just a matter of waiting for both camps to go public with what comes next. We wouldn't count on Megan Fox returning to the series though.