THE Transformers
the franchise has had a rocky road to theaters in recent years. Based on the Hasbro toy line, Transformers has appeared in a number of projects on the big and small screen since the mid-1980s, including several animated TV shows and live-action films. After living exclusively from animation, director Michael Bay helped the franchise make the leap to live-action on the big screen in 2007, and his film ushered in a new era for the Autobots and the Decepticons.
After five films, Bay left the franchise as director, with Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), a film that was widely criticized by critics and disappointed at the box office, marking its last entry. The franchise changed after that, with Bay remaining as producer. The more focused on the character Bee arrived in 2019, receiving positive reviews and performing modestly at the box office, followed by Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023), which received mixed reviews and disappointed theatrically. The next film also had mixed results.
Transformers One becomes a VOD hit
The animated film is a hit at home
Transformers One
has now become a huge hit on VOD following its dismal box office performance. Directed by Josh Cooley, this latest entry sees the franchise return to animation with a story that traces Optimus Prime and Megatron’s early years on Cybertron, before they became mortal enemies. Despite the pile Transformers One voice cast, which includes big names like Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson and Brian Tyree Henry, as well as an 89% critic score and 98% audience rating on Rotten tomatoes, the film was a huge theatrical disappointment, grossing just $124 million worldwide.
New data from IndieWire now reveals that Transformers One is ranked as the most popular title on VOD on Fandango at Home for the week of October 21-27. The animated film also ranked fourth on the iTunes VOD charts on Monday, October 28th. Transformers film surpasses titles like The Wild Robot (2024), Beetle juice Beetle juice (2024), Deadpool and Wolverine (2024), and Alien: Romulus (2024), while on the iTunes chart, it surpasses films like End with us (2024), Long legs (2024), Alien: Romulusand Twisted (2024). Check out the graphs below:
|
Best performing VOD |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Classification |
iTunes |
Fandango at home |
|
1 |
Beetle juice Beetle juice |
Transformers One |
|
2 |
The Wild Robot |
The Wild Robot |
|
3 |
Deadpool and Wolverine |
Beetle juice Beetle juice |
|
4 |
Transformers One |
Deadpool and Wolverine |
|
5 |
Long legs |
Alien: Romulus |
|
6 |
End with us |
Long legs |
|
7 |
Alien: Romulus |
Twisted |
|
8 |
Twisted |
End with us |
|
9 |
Despicable Me 4 |
Classified |
|
10 |
Reagan |
Reagan |
What Transformers One’s VOD Success Means for the Film’s Bottom Line
Will it be enough?
Transformers One was made with an estimated budget of US$75 million, which means could be looking for a break-even point between US$150 million and US$187.5 million. Considering it’s been in theaters for over a month, it’s slowed down considerably at the box office and won’t earn much more than the $124 million it’s made so far. The specific revenue generated by VOD sales isn’t typically disclosed, but it seems unlikely to bring the film to break-even, especially if it’s near the upper end of estimates.
That said, animated films can work particularly well at home, and Transformers OneThe rave reviews suggest it could end up surprising on VOD. The main test will be where the film fits IndieWireon the VOD charts in the coming weeks, as a consistent performance will be key if it is to offset theatrical losses. Even if the excited Transformers the film continues to be a hit at home, however, it seems unlikely that the film will get a sequel.
Source: IndieWire