Mark Wahlberg is officially part of 'Transformers 4'

Rumors that Mark Wahlberg would star in the fourth "Transformers" movie turned out to be true: Director Michael Bay has confirmed the casting of the Oscar nominee.

Bay had initially denied reports that Wahlberg, who also stars in Bay's action comedy "Pain and Gain," would star in "Transformers 4." He put a brief statement on his website saying he and Wahlberg were talking about another project.

A week later, though, Bay acknowledged that all the talk online about Wahlberg joining the franchise "gave me some ideas."

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"We are at the inception of our story process right now on 'T4,'" Bay wrote. "Let's say some ideas are gaining traction with me and my writer -- so I'm here to say thanks Internet chatter."

Thursday (Nov. 8), a full-blown press release confirming Wahlberg's involvement in "Transformers 4" hit Bay's site. Wahlberg is likely to take over the lead role with the departure of Shia LeBeouf from the series. In the release, Bay calls Wahlberg "the perfect guy to re-invigorate the franchise and carry on the 'Transformers' legacy."

"Transformers 4," incidentally, is due to hit theaters in June 2014. "Pain and Gain" is slated for next spring.

What do you think of the combination of Wahlberg, Bay and "Transformers"?