Transformers One grosses $3.4 million in promotional opening

There’s more than meets the eye at the box office this week.

“Transformers One,” the first full-length animated film in the series since 1986, from Paramount and Hasbro Entertainment, took in $3.36 million in promotional opening Thursday at the box office.

The family film, directed by Josh Cooley (“Toy Story 4”), is expected to make between $30 million and $40 million in its opening weekend, enough to dethrone Warner Bros.’ “Beetlejuice” and take the box office crown. “Beetlejuice,” another sequel to a beloved ’80s film, directed by Tim Burton, has been the top-grossing film for the past two weeks and is expected to add $25 million in its third weekend.

With a budget of $75 million, “Transformers One” is expected to be a big box office hit, thanks to positive reviews and a well-received fresh take on the fan-favorite IP. Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry star in the film as younger heroes Optimus Prime and Megatron, before they became arch-enemies and leaders of the Autobots and Decepticons. In this prequel and reboot of the “Transformers” universe, the two are known as Orion Pack (Hemsworth) and D-16 (Henry), miners on their robotic world of Cybertron. They are joined by Elita-1 (Scarlett Johansson) and B-127 (Keegan-Michael Key), later known as the popular hero Bumblebee. The cast also includes Steve Buscemi as Starscream, Laurence Fishburne as Alpha Trion, Jon Hamm as Sentinel Prime and more.

Also opening this week is Lionsgate’s Never Let Go, a survival thriller starring Halle Berry. The film is targeting a $4 million to $6 million opening, and has made $360,000 in early screenings.