Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson’s ‘Transformers One’ wows annecy audience with laughter and cheers

"Transformers One," the latest animated feature from Paramount, made a splash at the Annecy Animation Festival on Monday. The film, which features an all-star voice cast including Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, and Brian Tyree Henry, received a warm reception from the audience.Director Josh Cooley and Paramount Animation president Ramsey Naito were present to introduce the film in Annecy, France. They showed a not-quite-finished version of the movie, which is set to hit theaters on September 20. The cast also includes Keegan-Michael Key, Steve Buscemi, Laurence Fishburne, and Jon Hamm, though they were not present at the screening.“I’m very, very excited,” Cooley said while introducing the movie. “So much talent and nostalgic love has gone into this movie.”Cooley expressed his gratitude to the team behind the film, calling them “the greatest animators and CG artists in the world,” and gave a special shout-out to Industrial Light & Magic for their work. He also thanked the audience, referring to them as “audience one.”The film received applause at several points during the screening, especially during a pivotal scene involving a major character, which remains a surprise. Keegan-Michael Key's comedic lines also drew laughter from the crowd. At the end of the screening, the audience gave a standing ovation, and Cooley acknowledged their positive response."Transformers One" tells the origin story of how Optimus Prime and Megatron went from being close friends to bitter enemies. Chris Hemsworth voices Orion Pax, the character who becomes Optimus Prime, while Brian Tyree Henry voices D-16, the character who becomes Megatron. Scarlett Johansson voices Elita-1, and Keegan-Michael Key voices B-127.The film’s trailer was released in April after being previewed at CinemaCon in Las Vegas. At that event, Chris Hemsworth promised fans a new perspective on Optimus Prime, saying they will see "a side of this character that audiences haven’t seen before."Based on Hasbro’s popular Transformers action figures, "Transformers One" is produced by Paramount Animation and Hasbro Entertainment, in association with New Republic Pictures. This marks the franchise’s first animated theatrical release since "The Transformers: The Movie" in 1986