Transformers: Rise of the Beasts was released in theaters on June 9, 2023, and has been a hit with audiences. A sequel to the 2018 Bumblebee, which was a prequel, a spin-off, and a soft reboot of the franchise all at once, this seventh installment takes place in the 1990s and draws heavily from the '90s Transformers toyline Beast Wars. Beast Wars introduced two new factions to the mythos: the heroic Maximals, dedicated to preserving the world from tyranny and endowed with the ability to shapeshift into known animals, and the villainous Predacons, aggressive dragon and beast-like Cybertrons. Fans were disappointed that Transformers: Rise of the Beast did not bring the Predacon faction to the big screen; it will most likely make an appearance in the next chapters. The movie did, however, feature another villainous posse: the Terrorcons, Transformers who work for Unicron and are even more powerful than the Decepticons.

Update July 13, 2023: In honor of the digital release of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, this article has been updated by Mona Bassil with additional entries and more information about the robots in disguises.

As the Transformers film series is based on a toy line, every new film installment introduces a colorful new cast of characters to both expand the scope of the story but also sell toys and other merchandise to young and older fans. Audiences of all ages and backgrounds flock to watch those fun and action-packed films, so here is a roundup of all the heroes and villains that appear in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.

Optimus Prime

Transformers rise of the beasts Optimus Prime
Paramount Pictures

Optimus Prime is the leader of the Autobots, the most famous Transformer, and the face of the franchise. Optimus Prime has appeared in every live-action Transformers film, and in this film will transform into a 1987 Freightliner semi-truck. Optimus Prime will be voiced by Peter Cullen, who voiced the character in the original Transformers animated series and all the live-action films.

Bumblebee

Bumblebee in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Paramount Pictures

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is a sequel to 2018's Bumblebee, so it makes sense the title character and second most famous Transformers would return. Bumblebee is an Autobot scout who speaks through the radio after his vocal processor was damaged in battle. While Bumblebee used a VW bug as his alternate mode in his solo film, at the end of that film, he transformed into a 1970s Classic Chevrolet Camaro, which was the form he was in when Sam Witwicky first purchased him in Transformers.

Arcee

Arcee
Paramount Pictures

Arcee was introduced in the 1986 Transformers: The Movie and is notable as the most prominent female Transformer. She made a small cameo in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen before being killed off and also had a cameo in the opening scene of Bumblebee. She is finally in on the action for Transformers: Rise of the Beast, where she transforms into a Ducati motorcycle. Arcee is voiced by YouTube star Liza Koshy.

Mirage

Transformers Rise of the Beasts Mirage
Paramount Pictures

Mirage is an Autobot spy, and as his name hints has a unique power to create duplicate illusions of himself that allow him to escape and also for combat. Mirage transforms into a Porsche and forms a central friendship with Noah, the main human of the movie, played by Anthony Ramos.

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Mirage is voiced by SNL star Pete Davidson. Mirage will be a more laid-back everyman Autobot and is one of the central characters of the film. He sacrifices himself to save Noah but, in the end, is rebuilt, implying he will be around for plenty more films.

Wheeljack

A group of Transformers standing together
Paramount Pictures

Wheeljack is the Autobot's lead scientist and mechanic. The character was previously shown in Transformers: Dark of the Moon but was renamed Q for the film in honor of James Bond's quartermaster. Wheeljack did have a small cameo at the beginning of Bumblebee, and much like Arcee seems to have found his way to Earth. Wheeljack transforms into a white VW bus. In the film, he is voiced by Cristóbal Fernández, most famous for playing the role of Dani Rojas on the hit television series Ted Lasso.

Stratosphere

Transformers Dark of the Moon with Stratosphere, who will be in Rise of the Beasts
Activision
Hasbro

Stratosphere is an Autobot air solider, a rarity among the team as most air vehicles tend to be Decepticons. Stratosphere transforms into a cargo plane and will likely be used to help transport the Autobots across the globe. Famous voice actor John DiMaggio, known for voicing characters like Bender on Futurama and Jake the Dog on Adventure Time, voices Stratosphere in the film.

Optimus Primal

Optimus Primal in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Paramount Pictures

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts draws heavily from the Beast Wars era of Transformers, and with it comes the leader of the Maximals, which are descended from the Autobots. As his name implies, there is a connection between Optimus Primal and Optimus Prime. Unlike the Autobots, who transform into vehicles, the Maximals transform into animals, and Optimus Primal's primary form is a gorilla. In the film, he is voiced by Ron Perlman, famous for the role of Hellboy in both Hellboy and Hellboy 2: The Golden Army.

Airazor

Airazor
Paramount Pictures

A Maximal who transforms into a peregrine falcon, Airazor is the team's primary air support. Michelle Yeoh, hot off her performance in Everything Everywhere All At Once, voices the character in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Yeoh has also appeared in recent blockbuster films like Crazy Rich Asians and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. In the film, she is Optimus Primal's second-in-command and closest friend, as well as the bridge between the Autobots and Maximals.

Cheetor

Cheetor
Paramount Pictures

One of the most famous characters from Beast Wars is Cheetor, a rookie Maximal who transforms into a cheetah. Much like Optimus Primal is a mirror to Optimus Prime, Cheetor is very much the Beast Wars variation of Bumblebee. Tongayi Chirisa voices Cheetor in the film. Chirsa has previously been in films like Palm Springs and Antebellum and series like The Jim Gaffigan Show and iZombie.

Rhinox

Rhinox Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Paramount Pictures

The Maximal tech expert and second in command who, as his name implies, transforms into a rhinoceros. Rhinox is voiced David Sobolov, who previously voiced Depth Charge in the original Beast Wars: Transformers. He has a long history with the Transformers franchise, also voicing Shockwave in Transformers: Prime and Blitzwing in Bumblebee. In the film, Rhinox only has one line.

Scourge

Scourge
Paramount Pictures

The primary villain of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is Scourge. Scourge is the leader of the Terrorcons and is a trophy hunter. He transforms into a black Peterbilt logging semi-truck, making him a dark mirror of Optimus Prime, who has traditionally been portrayed as a Peterbilt truck. He is also a loyal servant of Unicron and is powered by Dark Energon.

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Scourge is voiced by Peter Dinklage, who most audiences will recognize as Tyrion Lannister on Game of Thrones. Dinklage has played villainous roles in X-Men: Days of Future Past and lent his voice to films like Ice Age: Continental Drift, The Angry Birds Movie, and The Croods: A New Age.

Battletrap

Battletrap in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Paramount Pictures

Introduced in the anime Transformers: The Headmasters, Battletrap is a Terrocon who transforms into an orange 1980s GMC towtruck. Battletrap is voiced by David Sobolov, who is also voicing the Maximal Rhinox in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. The actor tweeted that Battletrap was "The most ruthless character I've ever played."

Nightbird

Transformers Rise of the Beasts Battletrap

Nightbird is a sword-wielding Terrorcon with rocket thrusters that transforms into a Nissan Skyline GT-R R33. She is voiced by Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, the first transgender voice actor in the franchise. After a breakout performance as Angel in a production of Rent, Rodriguez appeared in series like Luke Cage and the Carrie Diaries and is one of the stars of the queer drama Pose, for which she received great critical acclaim and became the first transgender woman to earn a nomination in a major acting category at the Primetime Emmys.

Apeling

Apelinq in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Paramount Pictures

As for Apelinq, he is a former Maximal leader on their home planet who was supplanted by Unicron. Specialized in scientific research, he can turn into a huge gorilla, has sports retractable blades on his arms, and guards the Transwarp Key, which he later entrusts to Optimus Primal. David Sobolov also voices Aplinq, making him the third character in the film he voices.

Unicron

Unicron in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Paramount Pictures

Euphoria's Colman Domingo voices Unicron, the major threat of the film. Unicorn is a humongous planet-sized, planet-devouring, and planet-transforming Transformer who happens to be the Terrorcons' uber-master. The character debuted in the 1986 animation Transformers: the Movie and was previously teased in The Last Knight. Unicron appears to be the primary threat these new Transformers films are building to.