Transformers 5 has a release date, Mark Wahlberg has been confirmed to reprise his role, and the writing team for the movie has been set up, but there is still speculation surrounding Michael Bay's involvement with the movie.

Plot For Transformers 5 To Rewind To Earlier Movies In Franchise?  

There have been all manner of rumors regarding this aspect of the sequel to Age of Extinction, and Bay has yet to confirm if he will be directing the movie. Initially Bay had hinted at the fact that he was parting from the franchise. But newer reports from official sources suggested that he was on board, yet no one has explicitly stated that the helmer of the series will be taking on this project.

In fact recent reports have stated that Paramount is still in talks with Bay to have him come back for Transformers 5 and it is not quite a done deal yet. Master Herald reported on May 6 that the studio was negotiating with the director, and even though he is sitting in on the writing sessions for the movie, he hasn't quite committed to the project yet. The report also suggests that Jonathan Liebseman, who directed the reboot of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was still in the running if Bay were to ditch.

Will Megan Fox Join The Age of Extinction Sequel?   

In March, Deadline reported that Paramount was looking to get a bunch of new writers to work on the upcoming films, which will be part of the Transformers trilogy launched by Age of Extinction. The studio is working on tapping into the talent of Akiva Goldsman, and have him collaborate with Bay on the films.

Last year, Variety reported that the director has signed on to helm a Paramount movie based on the book, Thirteen Hours: A Firsthand Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi by Mitchell Zuckoff. The book investigates the terrorist strike on the U.S. Special Mission Compound & CIA Annex in Benghazi. This seemed to set off more rumors about Bay moving on to other stuff. But Deadline also clarified that in fact the director is hoping that the writing and main groundwork for Transformers 5 is done by the time he finishes filming Benghazi, as he will be running on a very tight schedule.

Transformers: Age of Extinction hit theaters on June 27, 2014.

Watch the trailer for Age of Extinction here: