As a long-time movie enthusiast and critic who has seen countless films come and go, I can confidently say that prequels have often left audiences feeling underwhelmed at the box office. The historical precedent is clear: more times than not, going back to origins doesn’t spark the same excitement as seeing beloved characters evolve further.
In 2014, “Transformers: Age of Extinction” was the top-grossing film worldwide that year by a considerable margin, earning an astonishing $1.1 billion globally, indicating that this franchise might last indefinitely. However, ten years later, this same series is facing one of its most severe financial setbacks. “Transformers One,” despite receiving excellent critical reviews, only managed to earn $25 million during its opening weekend, which was significantly lower than both financial predictions and the third domestic weekend of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.” The disappointing box office results for September 2024 franchise titles make it clear why “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” outperformed at the box office, while it remains unclear why “Transformers One” failed to meet industry expectations and gross only $25 million during its opening weekend.
After “Transformers: The First Movie” became part of the collection of sci-fi films that are enjoyable despite bombing at the box office, it’s worth pondering what caused its downfall. Why did this particular film mark the decline in the wider Transformers series’ box office success? There were several factors that made “Transformers: The First Movie” less appealing to audiences. Its storyline focused more on hardcore Transformers fans, which wasn’t appealing for family viewers who usually find sci-fi animation difficult to digest. Additionally, Chris Hemsworth isn’t a big draw at the box office. These factors, among others, contributed significantly to “Transformers: The First Movie’s” poor performance at the box office. The days of “Age of Extinction” being the global ruler of movies are long past with these dismal “Transformers: The First Movie” numbers.
Paramount’s erratic animated movie box office track record
When a film produced by Illumination or Pixar premieres in cinemas, it’s generally expected to be a financial success. However, not every animation studio enjoys the same level of luck. For instance, Paramount Pictures, the distributor of “Transformers One,” has had an inconsistent box office history with its own animated movies, including a significant flop that raises concerns. Despite this, the company has produced successful films based on well-known intellectual properties (IPs). The adaptations of popular children’s TV shows like “SpongeBob SquarePants” and “Paw Patrol” have proven to be reliable money-makers. Additionally, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” which was a hit in the late summer of 2023, both critically and financially, is another example of their success with IPs.
Despite having some successful animated films, Paramount has also experienced flops in this genre during the late 2010s with movies like “Sherlock Gnomes” and “Wonder Park,” which failed financially despite premiering at prime mid-March release dates. In July 2022, “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank” continued Paramount’s struggles in the animated movie market. One reason for these difficulties is that Paramount doesn’t frequently release new animated movies, which has hindered the development of effective marketing strategies and release dates to support each new film. However, a movie with “Mutant Mayhem”-level hype might be able to break through Paramount’s slump in animated films. Regrettably, “Transformers One” didn’t have enough appeal or impact to surpass the usual box office standards for Paramount’s animated titles.
The Transformers aren’t as popular as they once were
After the success of “Transformers” movies in 2011, earning over $350 million domestically effortlessly, the series has struggled since “Transformers: Age of Extinction” in 2014. Despite making over $600 million worldwide with “Transformers: The Last Knight” in 2017, it still lost Paramount over $100 million. This should have indicated to the studio that the series was no longer appealing to the general public. However, they continued producing more movies, including “Transformers One,” until 2023 when “Rise of the Beasts” underperformed significantly. It only made $281.9 million internationally, which is a low return for a franchise that once effortlessly earned over $500 million overseas.
Despite the fact that the “Transformers” movies no longer enjoy massive box office success as they once did, Paramount’s lack of other major franchises has kept them investing heavily in the series. In fact, a crossover film featuring Chris Hemsworth in both “G.I. Joe” and “Transformers” is in development. However, the disappointing opening weekend of “Transformers: One” serves as evidence that this franchise is not an endless money maker. To be honest, it’s been over a decade since “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” and the series has largely lost its appeal to most viewers, with only die-hard fans of the original concept still engaged. The Autobots have faced and defeated numerous adversaries throughout their history, but even they struggle against audience apathy.
Transformers One skewed too adult
The failure of “Lightyear” at the box office came down to one worrisome statistic: Families comprised only 22% of its opening weekend audience. That fact immediately clarified why that feature came in under financial expectations. Summertime Pixar films need hordes of families to come to theaters to be profitable. If your PG-rated animated feature isn’t resonating with families, something’s gone horribly wrong. That phenomenon didn’t just doom “Lightyear.” It also unfortunately plagued “Transformers One” across its underwhelming opening weekend. Across its preview screenings held two days before its proper September 20 release, “Transformers One” amassed an audience that was 72% non-families. More often than not, people buying “Transformers One” tickets were nostalgic adults, not the film’s younger target demo.
If “Transformers One” had made over $100 million at the box office mainly due to an older audience, that wouldn’t be a concern. However, its lower-than-anticipated opening suggests that only diehard Transformers fans attended this reboot. The general public, both young and old, showed little interest in the movie. What’s particularly troubling is that movies aimed at younger audiences usually perform better after their initial weekend. For instance, films like “Lightyear” primarily attracted nostalgic adults on opening weekend and then declined significantly afterwards. While Hollywood often targets 1980s-born adults with nostalgia-driven content, kids’ animated movies still need teenage viewers to be successful. Unfortunately, like “Lightyear” two years ago, “Transformers One” relied heavily on adult audiences reminiscing about their own childhood.
Competition from The Wild Robot
Normally, animated family films released around the same time have a gap of about two weeks between their premieres. For example, “Brave” and “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” in June 2012, as well as “The Secret Life of Pets 2” and “Toy Story 4” in June 2019, followed this pattern. This helps two movies targeting similar audiences to have some space and potentially thrive together. However, September 2024 has bucked this trend. Just a week after Paramount’s “Transformers One,” Universal/DreamWorks Animation is releasing “The Wild Robot” into the market. This means two consecutive weekends will feature new major animated family films, both focusing on robots!
In the case of the movie “The Wild Robot,” expected to earn over $30 million domestically, it’s not as if “Transformers One” launched just days before a highly anticipated “Minions” sequel. However, any competition for family audiences is significant, considering that “The Wild Robot” is debuting so closely after “Transformers One.” The upcoming Chris Sanders directorial project has garnered considerable attention in the major award season and is an adaptation of previously unseen source material on the big screen, which could make families view “The Wild Robot” as a must-watch in September 2024. Needless to say, this highly anticipated film didn’t help the struggling project “Transformers One.
No humans hurt the film commercially
Occasionally, the elements that elevate a film to greatness can lead to its commercial failure, illustrating the stark contrast between business success and artistic value. For instance, in 2024, “Furiosa” showcased this by deviating from the typical “Mad Max: Fury Road” formula. Similarly, the latest “Transformers” film, “Transformers One,” has faced a similar fate due to its unique approach. In this case, focusing on automatons instead of human characters significantly boosted the directorial work of Josh Cooley. Unlike previous “Transformers” movies directed by Michael Bay, “Transformers One” didn’t need to balance silly human humor and large-scale robot action, resulting in a more cohesive narrative that allowed Optimus Prime and Megatron to emerge as fully fleshed-out characters for the first time.
In simpler terms, the initial “Transformers” film may have lost some audience members due to its focus on robots alone, rather than including human characters like Mark Wahlberg, Shia LaBeouf, and Hailee Steinfeld who were popular in previous films. Having famous voices but no visible actors could not match the excitement of a new Mark Wahlberg action film with recognizable robots. Removing humans from the story might have been the best artistic decision for “Transformers One”, but it may have also led to its poor performance at the box office. Ultimately, the “Transformers” franchise was both boosted and doomed by its human-centric approach.
Months of positive buzz didn’t matter for families
In June 2024, about three months before the release of “Transformers One” in cinemas, Paramount Pictures showcased a near-final version of the film at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. This large gathering of animation enthusiasts and artists reacted ecstatically to the project. A month later, the production was screened again, this time for selected members of the press, who also gave it very favorable feedback. Eventually, Paramount decided to release reviews for “Transformers One” eight days before its domestic premiere, having previously shown the film extensively in previews. These marketing strategies aimed to convey great confidence in the upcoming “Transformers” movie to the public.
It turned out that Paramount misdirected their efforts when targeting the family audience for “Transformers One.” Parents are less likely to be swayed by pre-release hype and more inclined to base their children’s movie choices on word of mouth or reviews. For instance, despite the poor critical reception of “Despicable Me,” it has been more successful at the box office than “Ernest & Celestine.” Families aren’t just drawn to any poorly made film, and the film festival buzz around “Transformers One” doesn’t resonate with typical suburban parents.
Instead of attempting to generate excitement for “Transformers One” as if it were a rare art-house film, Paramount made the mistake of focusing on elements like pre-release buzz that typically don’t matter much for blockbuster family movies. This marketing strategy error significantly hurt “Transformers One,” making it even less accessible to those who aren’t fans of the original “Transformers” animated series and primarily interested adult viewers.
Transformers nostalgia’s already been exploited
2018’s movie “Bumblebee” started with a flashback scene showing the last battles between Autobots and Decepticons on their home planet, Cybertron. Unlike the Michael Bay “Transformers” movies, these battles featured fresh takes on classic robots that were less realistic and cluttered. Instead, the director chose to portray these characters as their colorful 1980s G1 counterparts, which was a delight for fans who had missed them after a decade of more grounded robot designs. However, this approach posed a challenge for “Transformers One,” since it too featured G1-style character designs for Optimus Prime and Megatron as a way to appeal to fans nostalgic for these classic characters.
Although the demographic had their nostalgia fulfilled with “Bumblebee” previously, the charm of seeing Transformers resembling their 1980s versions has significantly diminished. Regrettably, this was an instance where being second meant losing out, echoing Ricky Bobby’s saying, “If you ain’t first, you’re last.” The captivating prologue of “Bumblebee” significantly reduced many distinctive aspects of the original “Transformers,” such as exploring Cybertron in a Transformers story. Nostalgia has been instrumental in propelling numerous post-2020 box office successes to great financial heights. However, it’s challenging to effectively leverage that nostalgia when a film like “Bumblebee” has already catered to a particular kind of fan service. A sequence that boosted viewership for “Bumblebee” in 2018 ended up undermining the success of “Transformers One” six years later.
Sci-fi animation is a hard sell for family audiences
If there’s one subgenre families keep rejecting over the last 25 years, it’s animated science fiction. A handful of hits exist in this space, like goofy comedy “Mosnters vs. Aliens” or Pixar’s quieter romantic drama “WALL-E.” Otherwise, though, this domain is almost exclusively littered with deeply devastating financial misfires. “The Iron Giant” in 1999 was a crushing blow for Warner Bros. Feature Animation, while “Titan A.E.” was a big factor in the closure of Fox Animation Studios. Even Disney has succumbed to this problem with titles like “Treasure Planet.” The complicated history behind Disney Animation’s biggest flop includes a legendarily poor box office run reflecting the indifference family audiences have to intense sci-fi animation.
It seems that families might be reluctant to engage with these projects due to an overemphasis on intense action. Historically, families tend to prefer family-friendly animated titles filled with humor and catchy tunes. For instance, even a successful animated sci-fi film like “WALL-E” marketed its comedic elements, such as the robot interacting amusingly with a vacuum cleaner, rather than focusing on the action sequences and music choices found in the promotions for “Titan A.E.
The resurgence of a historical pattern proved to be problematic for “Transformers One”. Despite the final trailer highlighting the film’s humorous aspects, “Transformers One” seemed like the type of action-packed, animated sci-fi content that families have consistently found unappealing. Not even Optimus Prime could counteract the preferences of audiences who had previously hindered movies like “The Iron Giant” and “Treasure Planet”.
Transformers One was a standalone film with no ties to previous movies
In every Transformers film, the franchise’s lore grows increasingly complex and humorous. The most extreme example of this can be seen in “Transformers: The Last Knight,” which introduced the Order of the Witwiccans, a secret society that has worked alongside Transformers throughout history. This twist in the mythology explains why later Transformers films chose to overlook elements from “The Last Knight” and instead focus on standalone stories that are easier for audiences to follow. This strategy reached its peak with “Transformers One,” which disregarded Earth and the continuity of the previous seven Transformers movies, allowing it to start fresh creatively and offer a clean slate for the filmmakers.
Regrettably, this reboot of “Transformers One” may have driven away some cinema enthusiasts who were die-hard fans of the earlier films. The fresh start for the saga might not have appealed to those who had grown fond of the big screen representation of these robots in disguise from the late 2000s blockbusters. Some viewers, reminiscing about their youth and the authentic “Transformers” cinema, may have found a modern “Transformers” film unappealing. Ironically, the same elements that made “Transformers One” a successful movie might have contributed to its poor box office performance. Perhaps a reference to the Order of the Witwiccans in the initial characters could have improved the opening weekend’s reception.
Prequels have an iffy box office track record
Historically, prequels have been seen as financially risky for film studios due to their tendency to disappoint audiences rather than excite them. The films “Minions: The Rise of Gru” and the “Star Wars” prequels are exceptions that proved not every franchise extension is a financial disaster. However, it’s important to note that prequels often end up alienating audiences instead of engaging them by going back to origin stories. This is why movies like “Solo,” “The Huntsman: Winter’s War,” “Lightyear,” and “The King’s Man” didn’t perform well at the box office. It appears that this problem isn’t exclusive to the “Star Wars” franchise, as demonstrated by films like “Transformers One.” In summary, prequels have a poor history of financial success.
2018 saw movies like “Fantastic Beasts: The Crines of Grindelwald” and “Transformers One” struggle at the box office, not because their casts were new or fresh, but rather due to the fact that they featured younger actors portraying characters audiences were already familiar with from previous films. In the case of “Fantastic Beasts,” it was Jude Law as Dumbledore, while for “Dumb and Dumberer,” it was the newcomers taking over roles originated by Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. Similarly, the 2007 prequel “Transformers One” suffered a similar fate, mirroring the reception of earlier prequels. The appeal of seeing younger actors in these roles didn’t draw audiences to the theater as much as the original films did, especially since many of the pre-2024 “Transformers” movies already explored the backstories and origins of the Transformers on Cybertron or before they came to Earth. This made an origin story like “Transformers One” seem redundant to most moviegoers.
Chris Hemsworth isn’t a box office draw
There are multiple factors that could lead to tentpole films failing. Sadly, the primary reason some movies starring Chris Hemsworth didn’t succeed at the box office was due to their leading man. While he excels in fighting aliens with a hammer, his filmography has a series of flops, including the 2024 prequel “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” Surprisingly, Hemsworth played a crucial role in marketing for “Transformers One,” as he filmed an introduction for the first trailer (with co-star Brian Tyree Henry), and they both attended San Diego Comic-Con to promote the film to die-hard Transformers fans.
Despite Chris Hemsworth’s intense marketing efforts for the film “Transformers One,” it failed to boost the movie’s chances at the box office. The novelty of his first-ever leading voice-over role didn’t help either. Unfortunately, this failure added more doubts about his ability to carry a film as a leading man. With three flop prequels now under his belt, including “Winter’s War” and “Furiosa,” it seems that Hemsworth isn’t the kind of star whose name on a poster instantly excites audiences. However, it’s important to note that the poor performance of “Transformers One” wasn’t solely due to Hemsworth’s acting; rather, it appears that casting him as the lead in the film may have hurt both the movie and his box office reputation.
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2024-09-24 06:30