Ambulance director Michael Bay says that he's probably destroyed more vehicles than any other director in history. Bay is known for his explosive visual style. He debuted with 1995's Bad Boys and has escalated the bombastic carnage with each subsequent film, including movies like The Rock, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, and the first five movies of the Transformers franchise. The director's latest film is Ambulance, another action thriller with plenty of mass vehicular carnage starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Eiza Gonzalez.
Bay spent the better part of ten years directing the Transformers movies, which grossed over $4.3 billion at the worldwide box office. Along the way, he snuck in smaller films, including Pain & Gain with Dwayne Johnson and Mark Wahlberg and 13 Hours with John Krasinski and Halo's Pablo Schreiber. His most recent feature film was 6 Underground with Ryan Reynolds, which was critically panned, but helped Reynolds set a Netflix record for being in three of the Top 10 all-time Netflix Top 10 films for the streamer.
Screen Rant asked Bay how many vehicles he destroyed while making his newest film, Ambulance. The director didn't have a set number but said he's "definitely probably destroyed more vehicles than any other director in history." While there's no data currently to validate that claim, it's not beyond the realm of possibility, as Bay's "Bayhem" has seen the destruction of all manner of vehicles throughout his films, from cars, trucks, boats, planes, helicopters, ships, spaceships and more. For Ambulance, the titular vehicle can be added to that tally and judging from the trailer alone, there's a host of mechanized transports on the Bay chopping block. Here's Bay's complete response:
I don't, but someone can count. Well, we do have a count from my transpo guy, but I've definitely probably destroyed more vehicles than any other director in history. Just to give an example, I was in a Chinese car factory, and they were so impressed to take me into the guy that crashes the test crash dummies and I'm like, "I am not impressed, dude. Okay? I've crashed more cars than you ever have in your lifetime."
Bay recently discussed overstaying his welcome on the Transformers franchise (according to Steven Spielberg), saying he should've stopped after the fourth one. Still, he was lured back after it made over a billion dollars at the box office. The franchise has continued with Bay just producing at this point, starting with 2018's Bumblebee and the upcoming Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Bay has yet to announce his next directing project but is set to produce several upcoming high-profile projects that may or may not include vehicle destruction, including a remake of The Raid for Netflix.
Bay's claim is likely valid, but it will be impossible to know until someone crunches the actual numbers. The director has made a very healthy career out of destructive big-screen decimation, and, in truth, there aren't many who can match his style or expansiveness in that pursuit. While plenty of filmmakers have put explosive stunts and vehicular destruction on the big screen, Bay has made it an art form. He has spared almost nothing in his wake of doing so, making him one of the most uniquely eruptive filmmakers ever, with very little competition out there to match him. Until a filmmaker shows up to challenge Bay's ways, then he'll likely remain the king of cinematic destruction.
