Hitting theaters on Aug. 8, Friday, Paramount Pictures' "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is on track to earn $60-65 million over its debut weekend having earned $25.6 million on its opening Friday, including $4.6 million on Thursday, Forbes reported.
However, the $125 franchise reboot of the same name has received negative reviews from critics despite its performance on the box office.
The turtles are the title characters and the main attractions but they often feel left in the background, the same publication wrote.
Megan Fox was said to have spent much of the movie acting bewildered as her character reporter April O'Neil tries to keep up with rapidly shifting plot developments while William Fichtner playing Eric Sacks delivered a typical villain, The Hollywood Reporter commented.
Meanwhile, the same publication found Will Arnett playing cameraman Vern Fenwick as the only role that comes close to matching the turtles' energy.
But while the turtles in the movie look lively and lifelike, the lack of real-world correlation was strange, The Los Angeles Times remarked.
Another comment was that there was too much focus on the Fox's backside by the camera, which USA Today found recognizably shallow.
Similarly, Entertainment Weekly questioned whether the hit animated Nickelodeon reboot was trying to draw the kids or the middle-aged audience.
Produced by Michael Bay and directed by Jonathan Liebesman, the movie was criticized for depending solely on fan loyalty as it failed to cleverly invest on the iconic beats of the franchise, according to Variety.
Being the first live-action film in the franchise since "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III" in 1993, the reboot was set in New York City and starts in a dark place.
"Shredder and his evil Foot Clan have an iron grip on everything from the police to the politicians," according to Paramount Pictures.
The movie also stars Alan Ritchson, Noel Fisher, Pete Ploszek, Johnny Knoxville, Jeremy Howard and Danny Woodburn among others.