It would seem like Transformers One’s woes aren’t limited to its domestic box-office performance. The animated film under-performed in its global debut as well. Having opened in 50 territories, Transformers One generated under $15 million from overseas markets in its first weekend of release, while falling short of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice domestically. Tim Burton’s blockbuster pulled off a last-minute upset by out-performing Transformers One by just $1 million domestically, thereby claiming the number-one position for the third weekend in a row.

With $25 million domestically and another $14 million from overseas markets, Transformers One’s cumulative global total stands at $39 million. The silver lining here is that Paramount spent a reported $75 million on the film, which is roughly in the same range as what the studio spent on last year’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. That movie was modeled on the success of Sony’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and went on to generate over $100 million domestically and nearly $200 million worldwide.

Paramount can also take pride in the excellent reviews that Transformers One opened to. In his review, Collider’s Jeff Ewing wrote that the movie adds “complexity and new emotion to the characters and factions that franchise fans love, while having enough dramatic heft for unfamiliar and new audiences alike.” Transformers One holds a strong 88% approval rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, but its audience score stands at an incredible 98%. This is a hugely pivotal metric because it suggests that the movie might have longer legs than most. That being said, Transformers One didn’t quite attract the walk-in crowds that it was expected to this weekend, on the back of this phenomenal response.

The ‘Transformers’ Franchise Is In Need of a Spark

The positive reviews — while unusual for the Transformers franchise — are par for the course for director Josh Cooley, a Pixar veteran who co-wrote Inside Out and directed Toy Story 4. Something similar transpired a few years ago when LAIKA boss Travis Knight was brought in to direct Bumblebee, which became the first film in the live-action Transformers franchise to receive universal acclaim. Each previous installment, all of which were directed by Michael Bay, earned either mixed or positively toxic reviews. The last animated Transformers movie was released in 1986.

Featuring the voice talents of Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, and Brian Tyree Henry, Transformers One tells the origin story of fan-favorite characters Optimus Prime and Megatron’s famous feud. You can watch the film in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

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