Frank Welker as...Soundwave?

An amazing find on Michael Bay's official forum was the following tidbit of information about the voice of Soundwave in the new Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen movie:

 

Now, this can be interpreted a few ways.

1. This was Michael Bay's plan all along…to have one of the great voices of animation return for a classic role.

2. Michael Bay heard the fan outcry and actually listened.

3. Michael Bay's looking into it, and will see if Frank Welker's available.

Either way, it would be beyond badass to have another iconic voice (the other of course being Peter Cullen) reprising a role that all Transformer (G1) fans know and love.

In a recent interview, Frank Welker talked about his experiences with the new Transformers movie:

What was your reaction, when you heard about the out-pouring of support from the fans for you to reprise your role as Megatron in the recent movie?

Welker:
Well, I was absolutely blown away. I really had no idea how big the Transformers were, let alone the size of the fan base. Their passion and knowledge of all things TF is pretty awesome. For me, knowing the fans felt my G1 Megatron was original and important to them and should have been included in the feature production was humbling. That loyalty has pretty much increased my hat size about two fold. Of course I realize it is "Megs" ultimately…not me. 

Can you describe what kind of interactions you had with the producers, and were these related to your later work on the video game adaptation?

Welker:
I really had no interaction with the producers or the director. We tried to get together several times to do an in person interview/audition but couldn't make our schedules meet. I sent a couple of lines in via audio tape but never saw or read a script. From what I heard, the ultimate decision came down to the director and he did not feel my G1 Megatron voice would work with his vision. As far as the game…no, my work on the game was separate from the film group.

Have you been approached at all for any further work with the franchise, either with the movie
(Soundwave?) or another incarnation, such as Transformers: Animated?

Well it is a little too early to be specific but I will say yes and no. No, I have not been approached by the movie folks but yes I am still involved in the franchise…more on that later.

 

So, as of the time of this interview (3/9/09), Welker claims that he has not been approached by the movie folks. The aforementioned Michael Bay post is dated at 1:15am TODAY (3/10/09). Is there still time for Bay to get Welker onboard for Soundwave's voice in time for the movie's release? ABSOLUTELY. Will we see it happen? To quote Optimus Prime in the original Transformers: The Movie, "…All we need is a little energon…and a LOT of luck." Sue me. I've been dying to use that line somewhere. Deal with it.