In a bid to boost demand for Transformers toys Hasbro is to introduce a fresh line-up of robots in the next movie, which is set to hit cinemas in summer 2014.

The Transformers trilogy is said to have grossed over $2.6 billion at the worldwide box office. And while the latest instalment Dark of the Moon was the most successful - bringing in more than $1 billion in cinemas - sales of the associated toys were less than stellar.

Hasbro said the decline was due to fans already owning the Transformers characters from the films.

"This is why Transformers 4 will have a new cast of characters and it will be a story revolving around these new characters," Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner said at an event in London last week.

Director Michael Bay has signed on to make Transformers 4 and 5.

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