‘Transformers' edge out ‘Spider-Verse’ at box office

LOS ANGELES 

It was Miles Morales and the Spider-Verse versus the “Transformers” at the box office this weekend and the bots came out on top.

“Transformers: Rise of the Beasts,” the seventh entry in the series, took the No. 1 spot in its first weekend in North American theaters with $60.5 million according to studio estimates on July 11. “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" wasn't too far behind, however, with an estimated $55.4 million in its second weekend.

While a $60.5 million opening might not seem like enough to support a $200 million production budget, “Rise of the Beasts” is a movie that will make most of its money abroad. Since 2011’s “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” international ticket sales have accounted for at least 70 percent of the global box office total.

Sony's “Spider-Verse” sequel fell about 54 percent. In just two weeks, it's already surpassed the total domestic box office of the first film with $225.4 million in ticket sales and become the highest grossing Sony Pictures Animation release.

Third place went to Disney's “The Little Mermaid,” which earned $23 million in its third weekend. Two other Walt Disney Co. releases rounded out the top five, with “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” in fourth with $7 million in its sixth weekend and “The Boogeyman," in weekend two, in fifth place with $6.9 million.