Since its debut in 2007, the Transformers film franchise has brought explosions, cybernetic warfare, and sheer action spectacle to audiences worldwide over the past 18 years, raking in billions of dollars in both box office revenue and merchandise thanks to Michael Bay’s transformative late-2000s action blockbuster (no pun intended). Despite featuring some of the franchise’s greatest foes, however, the Transformers movies have failed to include the series’ newest and most terrifying villain, an enemy so formidable that even the mightiest of тιтans tremble at the thought of his power.

First introduced in the Transformers comic Void Rivals #12, the ruthless and omnipotent Goliant is—in true Vishnu fashion—a “destroyer of worlds,” an engineered monster designed by Cybertron’s oldest foe, the Quintessons. Capable of devouring planets and stars, Goliant makes his world-consuming predecessor Unicron look tiny in comparison, and Megatron a mere insect. With such immense, blinding power amid a terrifying, beast-like presence, the Cthulhu-esque Goliant is clearly next up in line as the Transformers’ greatest villain in a war that will surely bring galactic chaos to the Energon Universe.

Goliant Is By Far Transformers’ Most Powerful Villain

His Origin Story Is Gargantuan And Nightmarish

As seen in Void Rivals #12, Goliant bears blinding green eyes and an immeasurable celestial form reminiscent of Marvel Comic’s Galactus, another one of his world-eating contemporaries. Though many at the time ᴀssumed this unnamed form to be Unicron, it was later revealed to be Goliant in Void Rivals #17 by the rebellion leader Zerta-Thion, who recounts the origins of both the ruthless monster and his eventual cosmic prison, the “Sacred Ring.”

According to Zerta-Thion, the Quintessons sent Goliant to Cybertron after being expelled from the metallic planet in the Cybertronian rebellion. However, Zerta diverted the galactic monster to a remote system and tricked him into devouring a red star that quickly became a black hole. Then, as Goliant fed on the singularity, Zerta convinced the inhabitants of nearby worlds to abandon their planets and use them to each form one half of the Sacred Ring, a doomed prison that’s housed the planet-destroyer for millennia as he slowly drains the black hole of its energy.

Goliant Was Introduced Too Late To Appear In Any Previous Transformers Movies

The Galactic Monster Only Appeared Last Year

While the initial run of Transformers movies by director Michael Bay were far more grounded than in the comics, we eventually got a larger taste of the franchise’s extraterrestrial lore in Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon, which introduced the complex antagonist Sentinel Prime (voiced by the late Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy) the Autobots’ former leader, who betrays Optimus Prime and humanity in the hopes of rebuilding Cybertron.

Despite the original pentology’s Earth-based focus, the release of Transformers One last year was a clear sign that the series is moving closer toward exploring its cosmic origins. We cannot blame the original films for not including Goliant, however, because the character is, for all intents and purposes, brand spanking new, having only been introduced to Void Rivals in August 2024. Plus, there’s still so much more to explore with the cosmic and metaphysical nature of the Quintessons’ weapon, whose origin and powers still leave much to the imagination.

Goliant Is The Obvious Villain For A Future Transformers Movie

His Mysterious Nature Holds So Much Potential

Despite his recent arrival into the greater Transformers mythology, Goliant is the clear and obvious choice as the antagonist of the next film installment, as his mysterious origins and near-godlike omnipotence make him a formidable opponent that—with proper execution—could very well be the Thanos of the Transformers franchise. Of course, the route the comics take with the planet-eater must also run its course, but this shouldn’t stop filmmakers from seizing the opportunity to utilize this character, as his promise as a villain holds real cinematic weight, the likes of which have yet to be seen in any of the films thus far.

While it’s certainly too early to determine whether Goliant will appear in the next Transformers film (not to mention unlikely), the potential he holds as a future antagonist must not be overlooked by the franchise, as his inclusion as a villain may very well be the key to elevating the series toward the thematic heights found in Avengers: Infinity War, or even the Dune films. At the end of the day, however, accomplishing this goal with the audience as much as the filmmakers, and whether Goliant will see the silver screen rests in the hands of us as much as them.