Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Makes Explosive Box Office Comeback After 9-Year Hiatus

The latest installment in the Transformers franchise, titled Rise of the Beasts, has exceeded expectations with its impressive opening weekend box office numbers. The movie, which is the seventh installment in the live-action adaptation of the popular Hasbro/Takara Tomy toy line and media franchise, features a star-studded cast including Dominique Fishback and Anthony Ramos. Set in the 1990s, the plot revolves around two archeologists who get caught in the middle of a battle between the Autobots and the animal-shaped Transformers known as Maximals, all while trying to stop the menacing Unicron. According to Deadline, the movie is set to gross $60 million domestically in its first weekend, making it the best opening weekend for the franchise in almost a decade. This impressive feat surpasses the box office numbers of previous franchise installments, including The Last Knight and Bumblebee, with its closest contender being 2014's Age of Extinction, which grossed $100 million in its opening weekend.

Will Rise of the Beasts Usher In a New Era of Transformers?

The lukewarm box office performance of Bumblebee, a spinoff of the Transformers franchise, contributed to the extended gap between Transformers movies. The first four movies in the series were a commercial success, but the franchise seemed to be on the decline. However, the decision to take a break from producing new movies appears to have been beneficial.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts may not have generated box office numbers comparable to the early Transformers films, but it is a significant improvement. Additionally, it has the third-highest Rotten Tomatoes score of the entire franchise. These two factors suggest that the future of the franchise is stable, at least for the time being.

The future of the Transformers franchise looks promising, with Transformers: Rise of the Beasts being just the beginning of a series of projects set to be released in the 2020s. Along with the exciting tease of an unexpected crossover, fans can look forward to Transformers One in 2024, as well as two sequels to Rise of the Beasts. Whether or not these upcoming films will continue the success of their predecessor remains to be seen, but if they do, the franchise has the potential to come back stronger than ever before, both in terms of critical acclaim and box office success.