In a lengthy interview with Collider, we see what the themes of the film are, which includes ethnic minorities facing adversity in the 90s and a character arc for Optimus Prime. And it's when discussing Optimus Prime's character arc that we get the confirmation (if anyone needed one):
"But what’s interesting is, and you will appreciate this as a fan, at the end of Bumblebee, Optimus comes to Earth. What he’s experienced is failure, probably for the first time in his life, right? He’s had to retreat, he’s leaving the planet Cybertron. What’s happened to him from that experience? When we meet him in 2007, he’s a particular person, if you would. In 1994, he’s not the same person. He still has growth to do between ‘94 and 2007. So the character arc for Optimus in this, and the fun for the audience is, when you first meet Optimus – and we’ve had this experience because we’ve watched it with audiences and we’ve heard them talk about it – they’re like, “It’s definitely Optimus, but there’s something a little different…” At first, they’re like, “Wait, what, who… what Optimus is this?” And by the end of the movie, Optimus has become the guy that you’ve recognized from the Bay movies. Emotional.”
And speaking of character arcs, here is what was said about the humans characters and their growth in the film:
"It’s hard to say that about Shia [LaBeouf] in the first movie; you know, he goes from being a young man, essentially, to a man, right? In this case, Anthony Ramos and Dominique [Fishback’s] characters are both characters who are trying to find their way in a life, and in a cultural society, that’s not making it the easiest for them. And so, the experience of the movie for those characters is to come to terms, not exactly about who they are, but how to move forward in their lives. It’s an interesting character arc for both of them where they fulfill, to a certain extent, the desire that they were having for themselves."
You can read the full interview between Collider and Lorenzo di Bonaventura here.
Also, in some serendipitous fate, a new poster was recently found for Rise of the Beasts, which references the first Bay film. Here it is below.
