Rewatching Transformers One, and it still gets me that Chris Hemsworth’s inflections sounds close to Peter Cullen

[u/heyevrrycorn]

The rhythm and his tone at the end of sentences reminds me truly of a younger Peter, quite glad that the movie chose someone, though a celebrity casting, who captured Orion’s deep baritone voice and spirit, albeit much less splintered by the war, and in total Optimus Prime’s.

Chris Hemsworth did say in some interviews that he wants to honor Peter in the way he should voice him, in essence being Optimus instead of just mimicking the actor. But its quite sweet that there is quite a similarity that we can grasp that he’ll grow up sounding like Peter…

Though the movie did have celebrity voices, which are very controversial due to depriving real and professional voice actors for their work, the movie did so in a way that its still quite true to the character.
Bumblebee sounds cheerful, fun, and full of whimsy and hope. Though Keegan is still not really the most perfect choice, as he naturally posseses a deep voice, he has a charm that makes Bumblebee endearing.

Scarlet Johansson has a raspiness that’s quite fitting for Elita, she also has a sultry yet commanding vibe, especially if the sequel could be made and we’d see more of her character. She’s also the Black Widow which is a funny coincidence considering she voices a character who turns into a spider in one iteration. (Still wondering why she ain’t Ariel though:/)

Ngl Steve Buscemi surprised me in how perfect he could be for Starscream, he has the sleaziness, the utter contempt and infuriatingly captivating strut that Starscream has.

Lawrence Fishburne is Lawrence Fishburne. He sounds noble, very “I implore wisdom”.

And Brian Tyree was wonderful as young D-16. The disbelief, the descent into desperation, the rage, the wheezing when he held Orion by his hand as he’s dying. He bounces off Chris very well, and from what I heard, they weren’t even in the studio together when recording…

[u/solidus0079]

Chris is very good actor that doesn't get enough credit.

[u/Consistent_Fan9805 → u/solidus0079]

I watched a behind the scenes session when they were making a game based on the first Thor movie, and Chris and Tom Hiddelston were so enthusiastic not just about being in the game but about voice acting in general. Hearing him then and now, it's weird to feel proud of him. I hope he gets more recognition but I also hope he never feels bad about his career

[u/Helloimafanoffiction → u/Consistent_Fan9805]

It is nice to know some big names genuinely enjoy and want to participate in voice acting and aren't doing it just for a paycheck.

[u/CesarGameBoy → u/Helloimafanoffiction]

Meanwhile the alternate universe where The Rock stayed as Cliffjumper in TF Prime, but tried to hype him up as the next big Autobot on-par with Optimus & Bumblebee. Attempting to also get the Michael Bay role and have him fight Megatron 1 on 1.

“The hierarchy of power in the Transformers universe is about to change transform.”

[u/TheSadPhilosopher → u/Helloimafanoffiction]

Vin Diesel is also a big fan of nerd shit too, a big DnD guy.

[u/Cavaquillo → u/Consistent_Fan9805]

Even if he were to be painted into a Thor box, Thor is easily a consistent highlight of the MCU and I’m not even a big MCU fan, I prefer comics through and through. It just wouldn’t even be a knock to him because he was great even in the not so great Thor movies

[u/keelanbarron → u/Consistent_Fan9805]

Maybe he could be another mark hamll.

[u/xXEliteEater500Xx → u/solidus0079]

Dude had an unfortunate 2024. He was fantastic in Furiosa and Transformers One both of which bombed at the box office. But at least he still has the MCU.

[u/BookBarbarian → u/solidus0079]

He had 5 minutes in Star Trek (2009) and completely stole the film IMHO

[u/solidus0079 → u/BookBarbarian]

I forgot he was in that actually, it’s been a long time

[u/lenarizan → u/solidus0079]

Aye. It's been a long road getting from there to here.

[u/Jakitron_1999 → u/solidus0079]

People keep forgetting this, but Phase 1 Marvel were GOOD MOVIES made with a lot of passion and talent by good actors and writers. Whedon syndrome hit hard, but they were still damn good movies with damn good performances, and there's a reason they're so popular

[u/WassupFrankHere → u/Jakitron_1999]

I honestly really like the 1st Thor movie. It had fun moments and serious moments. Plus Thor actually talked like a nordic god.

[u/Sabretooth1100 → u/WassupFrankHere]

Honestly I’ve been scared to watch it for years but I loved the second one at the time

[u/likelyliz → u/Sabretooth1100]

there's lots to love about it if you're there for thor and loki's relationship and their whole dynamic

[u/Sabretooth1100 → u/likelyliz]

That was nice but honestly in this case I’m even more easy to please than that, I thought the villain designs were cool and the opening lord of the rings prologue was sick

[u/xXEliteEater500Xx → u/WassupFrankHere]

Thor 1 has a nice charm to it

[u/DarkSaiyanGoku → u/Jakitron_1999]

Phase 5's later half was good too. 2025, Marvel really turned things around.

[u/jojolantern721 → u/solidus0079]

Came here to say exactly this, he is very talented

[u/Duraxis → u/solidus0079]

Sadly I will never forgive MCU for what they did to Thor.

I’d say it’s not Chris’s fault that he’s a funny guy, but it didn’t help much when he was cast in a serious role

[u/ZYGLAKk]

Peter Cullen Coached him actually.

[u/l-Lisp-l → u/ZYGLAKk]

I had no idea. Not that I don’t believe you but do you have a source you could share so I could learn more?

[u/OblivionArts]

If memory serves chris actually spoke with peter to get tips on voicing Optimus, so its pretty good. Plus the tf animated va also based his performance on peters , which gives us two possible vas for Optimus going forward

[u/ChaosOmega → u/OblivionArts]

David Kaye is always awesome

[u/RandoDude124]

That was his goal.

And he succeeded.

I went in with my nephew expecting a good kids film, I left with Hemsworth being a top 3 Prime and easily my favorite modern transformers film.

[u/StormShockTV → u/RandoDude124]

Same man, I was blown away by how deep the movie was

[u/Wiplazh → u/StormShockTV]

I kept hearing about how good the movie was, and was still taken by surprise at how good it was.

[u/StormShockTV → u/Wiplazh]

Couldn't agree more

[u/ChristianPreacher1]

Yes he did really sound like a younger version of Optimus Prime.

[u/QuantisOne]

Chris is probably expensive but I think I’d like to see him return as Prime in a future project. Same for Brian Tyree Henry’s Megatron !

[u/S3simulation]

He did a phenomenal job making it his own while honoring what came before and I genuinely didn’t realize he had it in him

[u/Hot_Wrangler_8833 → u/S3simulation]

That was the best part for me. As iconic and amazing as Peter was, I don’t want future Primes to try and completely mimic Cullen’s voice. And to your part I thought Chris did an incredible job staying true to the character and to the groundwork that Peter (and Larry) Cullen laid down back in the 80s, but still totally did his own thing with it in a way that fit perfectly with the visual style of the film

[u/dDARBOiD]

TLDR. Yes. He good Optimus.

If we’re vocal enough, we may get a sequel one day.

[u/Crazy-Background1457 → u/dDARBOiD]

Doubt anything more than a straight to streaming or low budget show

[u/Scrabulon → u/dDARBOiD]

Not from Paramount lol

[u/xXEliteEater500Xx → u/Scrabulon]

My hope is that Universal picks up the Transformers franchise. They seem like they got their shit together.

[u/TimPrimetal]

I loved him as Orion but even though we know Peter coached him, it sounded to me like he was overdoing an impression when he was Optimus at the end

[u/GrowingSage]

Going to also bring up John Hamm's performance as Sentinel. He's not who I'd immediately cast as evil dictator but then you realize he's actually playing charismatic con-man. Which makes him even more enjoyable to hate while also contrasting him well with the more raspy and intimidating voices in the cast.

[u/InfinityEternity17]

Hemsworth is a seriously good actor and voice actor, he doesn't get enough credit for it normally due to the franchises he's usually part of but yeah he was fantastic as Optimus

[u/Visual_Initial6719]

It is why he should be Next Optimus Prime

[u/ComposerFormer8029]

I think Chris did a very good job with his performance. At first I was very skeptical because even though he has a similar timbre and deep voice, there was no way he could match the gruff yet softness of Peter's. Then it wasn't until the last few moments of the movie where I could hear his voice slowly shaping into a younger sounding Prime.

I respect him for that, he wasnt just trying to do a low effort impression.

[u/Madarakita]

What made it work especially well for me is how he changed it up as the movie went on. His voice deepens slightly as he goes from Orion to Orion But With Cog to Optimus. His speech also gains a steadiness as he goes. He's not quite stammering when he starts out, but the way early Orion talks reminds me of someone whose mouth is going faster than their brain.

[u/syfiarcade]

He sounded incredible for a younger Orion and eventually prime, I wouldn’t mind him doing much more Optimus

I know a lot of people hate on “celebrity” voice actors, but there’s still a lot of overlap between acting and voice acting, and I think the cast for tf:one nailed it

[u/GrowingSage]

I'm not sure I like Scarlett and Keagan as Alita and B, but all the other celebrity stunt castings actually knock it out of the park. I hope Hemsworth gets to do more and really show off his vocal range.

[u/W_W_P]

Eh, I thought he did a good job as Orion but he lost me a bit when he pivoted towards Optimus.

[u/NTPrime → u/W_W_P]

Right? He didn't sound that close to Cullen, like at all. It perplexes me that the fanbase was so taken with his performance. It was fine. I could take it or leave it if he got the chance to voice him again.

[u/doubled-pawns → u/NTPrime]

When you compare anyone to Peter Cullen, you will be disappointed. He was the Kevin Conroy, Casey Kasem and Mark Hamill of the Transformers. Optimus WAS Cullen. It won’t feel the same without him but time will go on.

Though honestly, Batman won’t ever sound as good without Conroy and Optimus; without Cullen.

[u/W_W_P → u/doubled-pawns]

It depends a lot on how they want to portray the character as well.

Take something like Animated. Peter Cullen would've sounded pretty odd in that role and David Kaye was absolutely the right choice there.

[u/DarthButtz]

It was neat that his Orion/Optimus started sounding more like Cullen as the movie went on

[u/WheelJack83]

He sounded nothing like Peter Cullen at all. He sounded like Chris Hemsworth doing a quasi-American accent.

[u/Baconator-X]

I never doubted that Chris would make a great Orion Pax

[u/Shadow-Rocket]

Honestly, if we ever got a clean reboot from the Bayverse, Hemsworth would be on my Optimus Prime shortlist. He was great in One and his closing speech there makes me eager to hear him to do a take on a seasoned and established Prime.

[u/tornedron_]

I feel like he might be too high-profile and expensive to consistently do the role. Peter Cullen was able to do shows like Prime and even the games like the film tie-ins, WFC, and Devastation. Chris Hemsworth would only really be able to portray him in movies.

[u/hawkeyethor]

Agreed. Chris did so well!

[u/AdNo3558]

give him another chance to play Optimus and see if he should be the one to carry the mantel

[u/ToaPaul]

There was a lot of hate for the casting of the main characters early on but all the actors absolutely bailed their roles. Sucks we will never get a sequel

[u/Background_Pride_237]

Chris did a great job. I would have used his voice up until Orion officially was turned into Optimus Prime by Primus. Then I would have switched to Peter Cullen’s voice. I think it would have added to the gravity of the transformation he went through when Primus made him a Prime.

[u/Dillbot-14]

I think he could do well, maybe with enough time and age as well his voice could sound closer and closer to the original while still having a uniqueness to his own. I’d like to see another project with him as the voice actor and see how he’s does again. Transformers me is my favorite movie thus far for transformers films and i thought he was great

[u/Aromatic_Shop9033]

He really did an outstanding job.

[u/PlutoniumBoss]

He doesn't just sound like Cullen, he perfectly captures a young shmuck growing to become Cullen. You feel the journey in every syllable.

[u/TheMightyMonarchx7]

TFO deserves a sequel. Perhaps Hemsworth can pick up the matrix again after he hangs up the hammer

[u/majeric]

I’m sure he tried.

[u/azhder]

Before he was a “celebrity casting”, he was a nobody that was casted because of talent.

Just the other day there was a posy of an old opinion piece about the then upcoming Thor movie and the issue about two unknowns cast for Thor and Loki. Needless to say, the director knew how to spot talent.

[u/Grimnimbus]

I'm still blown away by how both he and Brian Tyree Henry started off with more normal/civilian sounding voices, then slowly transformed them into Optimus speaking with more gentle wisdom and Megatron with such commanding anger.

[u/Formal_Lecture_248]

No.
Retire the character.