New Transformers Movie to be Shot with Chinese Cast Members

Some scenes of Transformers: Rise of Galvatron, the fourth in the series,  will be shot in China later this year for the movie\'s global release on June 27th, 2014.

Chinese elements will be featured extensively in the film directed by Michael Bay, Paramount Pictures said in a press conference at the 16th Shanghai International Film festival yesterday.

Pangu Plaza in the core area of Olympic Green in Beijing will feature because of its iconic dragon-shaped architecture and the surrounding Olympic pavilions, the Bird\'s Nest and Water Cube, the producers said.

Beijing Pangu Investments is the first Chinese company to sign a joint venture contract with Paramount Pictures.

The film will also star Chinese actors and actresses including Li Bingbing, who played in last year\'s Resident Evil 5. Four other Chinese actors and actresses will be signed to the cast. The Chinese public will be able to choose which other actors they want to see in the film through an online voting process. The result will be announced on June 30th.

The Transformers series is one of the most popular American products in China. In 2011, the third movie, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, took US$16.5 million at the box office.

Last night, Helen Mirren, the Oscar-winning British actress who starred in The Queen, attended the premiere of her director husband Taylor Hackford\'s latest film Parker at the Grand Cinema.The film stars Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez. Statham plays leading character Parker,  a professional thief, in this jewelry heist crime caper.

Mirren is a household name in the United Kingdom and has won numerous awards, including four BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, four Emmy Awards and one Academy Award. She stars in the recent production Hitchcock as the director\'s wife Alma Reville.