Steve Jobs Forbade Transformers Cast from Using iPods as He Hated the Movie
As the new Transformers come out, it's time to remember one of the most hilarious stories about the franchise: the one time Steve Jobs personally jumped Michael Bay.
Apple is one of the world's biggest brands, and some even call it "the brand" as there's arguably no other company with such a strong positioning and marketing.
The overwhelming success of Apple relies a lot on the careful attention to detail and the company's reputation, the foundations of which were laid by Steve Jobs himself.
The already-legendary visionary behind Apple has always been known for his demanding and perfectionist character.
Steve Jobs cared about every slightest angle of a MacBook font as well as every last media mention of his company; sometimes, he was ready to go to extremes to protect his company and its reputation.
Not many people know that, but Steve Jobs hated the Transformers franchise. Not that he didn't like it; for some reason, he actually hated it with a burning passion.
There's the funniest story that involves him, the franchise, and Apple products, too.
Once upon a time, Jobs learned that Michael Bay, the director of Transformers, was going to have his characters use Apple products in the movies; specifically, an iPod.
The Apple boss was furious and terrified: since he couldn't stand the franchise and considered it a waste of time and money, he didn't want Apple to associate with it.
There were arguably many more gentle ways to go about it, but Steve Jobs chose to go for a direct attack.
The Apple boss got Michael Bay's phone number, called the man himself, and demanded that no product of his company is ever shown in Transformers, or else. We've no idea what the "else" was, perhaps, a lawsuit.
The director was shocked by this call, to say the least. He tried to reason with Jobs but soon realized that there was no chance to convince him otherwise and had to comply with his demands.
If you pay attention, you can notice that there's no piece of technology in Transformers with the Apple logo: they were forced to switch to Nokia.
Some people respect Jobs for going the extra mile to protect his brand's reputation; some say he had no right to interfere with the director's vision.
We don't pick sides here; frankly speaking, we just find this story too hilarious to keep a straight face.
Source: IMDb