10 Directors Who Could Take Over Transformers From Michael Bay

One of the reasons the first Transformers film works (or, at the very least, works better than the sequels) is that it has a classic Steven Spielberg feel to it. It starts out as a classic "a boy and his car" story, trying to win the girl and reach maturity, before naturally evolving into crazy robot madness. The series could use a lighter, nostalgic touch like that, and no filmmaker working today does that better than Brad Bird.

His feature debut The Iron Giant already has a lot of parallels with the first movie, though Bird's film retains its earnestness throughout instead of segueing into typical Michael Bay-isms. But Iron Giant's set-up could serve as a basic blueprint for how to approach a new generation of Transformers films, and with Stranger Things now a pop culture touchstone, that whimsical approach would be more appropriate than ever.

Bird also has a great talent for executing funny and inventive action sequences, as both The Incredibles and Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol have proven, which would further help differentiate it from Bay's action. But most of all, Bird could bring a sense of optimism and hope to a series that too often indulges in relentless destruction.

Whether you loved it or hated it, you can't deny that Tomorrowland tried to be an antidote to the pessimism of modern culture with its unbridled positivity. Maybe through something like Transformers, Brad Bird can take another shot at that message and refine it.