For a time, it seemed like the Transformers franchise was untouchable. Michael Bay's movies frequently grossed over $1 billion at the worldwide box office at a time when that was far from commonplace...despite often taking a mauling from critics!
As time passed, moviegoers grew tired of the endless blur of CG action and poor storytelling. Not even the much smaller in scale Bumblebee could turn things around, with a respectable $468 million haul a far cry from what the franchise typically achieved.
Earlier this year, Steven Caple Jr.'s reboot, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, blasted into theaters and set the stage for a future crossover with G.I. Joe.
However, with its time in multiplexes having ended last week, the movie has finished its run by grossing a total of $436.6 million against a production budget of $195 million. It's doubtful Rise of the Beasts broke even by the time all was said and done, and had it not earned $91 million in China, we'd be looking at one of the year's biggest disasters.
This means Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is both the franchise's lowest-grossing instalment and almost certainly its most financially unsuccessful effort.
Those aren't the sort of box office records studios set out to break.
While there was nothing inherently wrong with the movie, a 52% Rotten Tomatoes score suggests it was nothing if not divisive. Whether this will derail Paramount's plans for a G.I. Joe crossover remains to be seen, but some changes are bound to happen as a result of this disappointing performance.
"Returning to the action and spectacle that have captured moviegoers around the world," reads the synopsis, "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will take audiences on a '90s globetrotting adventure with the Autobots and introduce a whole new breed of Transformer – the Maximals – to the existing battle on earth between Autobots and Decepticons."
The cast was led by Hamilton star Anthony Ramos, with Dominique Fishback, Luna Lauren Vélez, and Tobe Nwigwe joining him. Peter Cullen will once again lend his voice to Optimus Prime, while Ron Perlman has stepped in to play Optimus Primal, the leader of the Maximals.
Peter Dinklage, Liza Koshy, John DiMaggio, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Pete Davidson, and Cristo Fernández also star.