With the wide release of Bumblebee, the spinoff Transformers prequel, now less than a month away, a new featurette focuses on the filmmakers' decision to bring back the classic 80s design of the characters from the action figures and animated series.

With the upcoming film set in the 1980s when the franchise first debuted, the production decided to take advantage of the throwback setting by bringing the look of the Autobots and Decepticons as close to their original Generation 1 designs as possible.

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"I'm a child of the 80s," declared director Travis Knight. "I grew up playing with Transformers action figures, I grew up watching the Transformers animated series."

To reflect the decision to embrace the nostalgia and original designs of the characters, the visual artists and production designers took heavy influence from the popular animated series in redesigning fan-favorite characters including Optimus Prime.

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"Every detail we could get off the cartoon, we applied to the characters," explained production designer Sean Haworth.

Directed by Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings) from a script by Christina Hodson (Birds of Prey), Bumblebee stars Hailee Steinfeld, John Cena, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Pamela Adlon, Jason Drucker, Abby Quinn, Rachel Crow, Ricardo Hoyos, and Gracie Dzienny. The film arrives on December 21.