Brian Tyree Henry Reveals Why Young Megatron Will Make You Root For The ‘Bad Guy’ In Soon-To-Be-Released ‘Transformers One’
Brian Tyree Henry has a knack for breathing life into complex characters; there’s just omething about playing villains that really gets his creative juices flowing. And now, as Transformers One nears its release, he's ready to do it again—this time as a young Megatron.
While most actors dream of playing the hero, Henry has a soft spot for the misunderstood villains. In a recent interview, Henry revealed his lifelong fascination with the “bad guys” and how, in his eyes, they aren’t really bad at all—just a little lost.
“When I was a kid, my parents always got me the villain toys,” Henry shared with CBS Mornings. “But I played with them like they were heroes. I always feel like villains are so misunderstood. We're always presenting them to be dark and evil, but they got there some way, like what happened?” This is very mindset that Henry brought to the role of young Megatron, the infamous Decepticon leader.
He sees Megatron not as the dark, twisted antagonist we’ve come to know but as someone who started out with hopes and dreams, just like any other young bot.
In "Transformers One," audiences get to witness the origin story of Megatron and his once-ally-turned-enemy, Optimus Prime. Henry voices a younger, more relatable Megatron, also known as D-16, and promises that fans will get to see a side of the character they’ve never seen before.
“I wanted to get to the heart of who Megatron was so people would leave the theater and be like, ‘You know what, I actually understand. I feel that. I may be Decepticon now,’” Henry joked, but his words carried a deeper truth.
He’s on a mission to show audiences that even the most notorious villains are not born evil—they’re made.
Scroll down for more details on this intriguing interview...
Brian Tyree Henry says you might leave the theater a Decepticon
The seasoned actor with Oscar, Emmy, and Tony nominations under his belt poured his own life experiences into this role.
He described imagining Megatron and Optimus Prime as being around 18 to 20 years old, a time in their lives full of laughter, fears, and dreams—just like his own journey when he moved to Atlanta to attend Morehouse College.
“I was just this young, precocious, incredibly hard-headed child that was trying to figure out how to be a man,” he recalled. It’s this sense of self-discovery and vulnerability that Henry brings to his portrayal of Megatron.
Henry’s approach to his characters is always about finding their heart, no matter how dark their paths might seem. Beyond Transformers One, Henry continues to shine in roles where he can dive deep into the heart of his characters. His upcoming film, The Fire Inside, is set for release in December.
Whether playing villains or unlikely heroes, Henry’s ability to humanize complex characters makes him a force to be reckoned with in Hollywood. As he puts it, “I feel like every man that I’ve been fortunate enough to play is somebody that we know, and I feel like they deserve to be reflected.”
