With Stan Bush’s arena rock anthem, “The Touch,” echoing into eternity to herald its return to theaters, “Transformers: The Movie” is gearing up for a special 40th anniversary 4K salute thanks to the nostalgic folks over at Fathom Entertainment.
“Transformers: The Movie” originally marched into theaters beginning on Aug. 8, 1986, as a bridge between the second and third seasons of the “Transformers” animated series to introduce the next generation of sentient machines to roll out with Hasbro’s reformed Transformers toy line. Since then, it’s become a bona fide geek favorite that still stands as one of the best “Transformers” movies of all time.
To honor its big birthday, “Transformers: The Movie” will be re-released in theaters starting on Transformers Day, aka Sep. 17, 2026, and running limited screenings through Sep. 21, 2026, so fans can “relive the action, the music, and that moment”.
This dynamic Autobot versus Decepticon showdown on the planet Cybertron features an evil planet-sized Transformer called Unicron and its insatiable appetite for destruction. The cult film was a decidedly somber affair set in the year 2005, two decades after the events seen in the “Transformers” cartoon show.
The movie features the shocking deaths of several beloved G1 characters. We really dig the marketing of its re-release poster, labeling the event as “The Apology Tour!” Poor Optimus.
Don’t confuse “Transformers: The Movie” with some simple kids’ movie just because it’s an adaptation of a cartoon show based on a toy line. It’s a dark, satisfying sci-fi adventure with an exceptional vocal cast that includes Orson Welles as Unicron, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, Frank Welker as Megatron, and “Star Trek’s” Leonard Nimoy as Galvatron.
“Hasbro and Fathom Entertainment would like to formally invite you back to the scene of the crime,” states the official anniversary event synopsis. “Forty years after ‘The Transformers: The Movie’ did what it did to Optimus Prime, The Apology Tour 40th Anniversary Screening brings the film back to theaters…with four decades of hindsight and one very overdue ‘our bad.’ Relive the moment in the place where your world was changed forever. Not changing history. Just finally celebrating it. Because forty years later, it still hits like a truck.”
“For decades, Transformers fans have carried this film with them, which is a testament to its storytelling and lasting cultural impact,” Alyse D’Antuono, Vice President, Global Brand & Franchise Strategy, Action Brands, Hasbro, said in a press release. “Bringing it back to theaters is an opportunity for longtime fans to relive it together, and for new audiences to experience a defining chapter of Transformers history.”
“Transformers: The Movie” heads back to multiplexes on Sep. 17, 2026.