Transformers Megatron Costume

My Megatron costume idea came from a not so recent trip to Universal Studios. I’ve always been a huge fan of the Transformers. So the first place I went when I got to Universal was directly to Transformers to meet the characters.

I was completely blown away by the costumes! They had everything… detail, craftsmanship, and overall amazing design. I decided right then and there, I was going to do this too! So, I sat there and waited for each Transformer to come bursting out of the N.E.S.T hangar. Prime, Bumblebee, and Megatron. Out of the 3, I decided Megatron would be my project.

As soon as I got back home, I started to do some research. I took a little design inspiration from G1 Megatron (1980’s cartoon), a little from the Transformer movies, and a little from the Universal Studio character.

I started working on my costume in January 2015. Since I have no background in art, painting, or any sort of cosplay, you can imagine that many mistakes were made. However, after more than 100 hours of hard work, $250 in supplies (including stilts), and countless hours designing and planning,I finally finished the costume on October 24, 2015. The result still has me wondering, “How the heck did I build this thing?”

Megatron Costume Supply List

My parts/supplies list is quite extensive.

2 sheets of ¾ in foam insulation
2 packs of craft foam
1 pack of EVA foam
Tons of hot glue sticks
Spray paint (made for plastics, because the others melt the foam)
A goalie hockey helmet
Plastic sheeting
Drywall stilts
Assorted plastic hardware for details, zip ties, screws, nylon straps and clips
Velcro
Lighting strips
LEDs
Speakers
Paint markers
Acrylic paint
Lots and lots of coffee

Costume Instructions

I drew up my initial plans, and began cutting the foam.
As I started to see the costume come together, I cut more out and hot glue gunned the pieces.
I didn’t have much of a plan for the details. When I’d cut strange angles from the basic body pieces, I began to incorporate those leftovers into the details. This actually turned out to work really well.
For the majority of the body, I custom fit the pieces directly to my body. The torso, shoulders, arms and hands were all specifically cut to fit me.
The right hand has moving fingers, which are just an extension of my own (connected with nylon straps).
As for the helmet, I used styrene plastic sheets with a heat gun, cut and formed the pieces together and set two LEDs in the eyes.
The left hand has two battery powered speakers hooked up to my MP3 player. The playlist, fittingly plays songs from the Transformers soundtrack.

This costume stands at over 8 feet tall, so you can imagine people were amazed.

Everyone flocked to me and wanted pictures. I noticed some folks would just sit there and stare, no moving, no talking… just staring in disbelief. I had a few people tell me I should be in Hollywood. A few said it was the best costume they ever saw, but for the most part, everyone just told me what an amazing costume it was and wanted to get pictures with me.

There will be many more reactions as I still have a trick or treat to attend along with a few other events I was invited to.

As someone who’s never done this before, and having absolutely zero artistic background, this really goes to show you can do anything you put your mind to.

This was the most rewarding experience and I would highly encourage others to take on making a costume. Futhermore, I would like to thank my wife for being so supportive of my new found hobby. Without her, I never would have been able to accomplish this. Thank you baby, I love you! And of course My 14 month old son Jackson, I love you too buddy.

Megatron Costume Supply List

Costume Instructions

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