Michael Bay signs up to direct Transformers 4

Though director Michael Bay seemed adamant that the third Transformers film, released just last summer to lukewarm reviews, would be his last, the 'splosion-loving director has signed up to helm the fourth film in the franchise.

Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura confirmed Bay’s involvement to MTV, and announced a release date of summer 2014.

“Yeah Michael’s gonna direct and it’ll be releasing in the summer of 2014,” said Bonaventura. “We’re excited and I think the challenge there is we really are gonna do a reboot, and what that’s gonna be we don’t even know yet.”

Seeing as the Transformers franchise has always been a massive money-spinner for Bay (Dark Of The Moon made $1bn worldwide), it’s not difficult to see why he’d be tempted to return for a fourth round of robots beating the crap out of each other.

That said, both 2009’s Revenge Of The Fallen and last year’s Dark Of The Moon received a critical drubbing, which is perhaps why the mega-director has decided to give the franchise a refresh.

We can probably count series regular Shia Labeouf out, then, so expect a new lead and a shiny new set of Autobots for the franchise that refuses to die with any dignity.

Transformers 4 will open in the USA on 29 June 2014. A UK release date has yet to be confirmed.