Success Confirmed! Bumblebee Movie Declared Profitable By Viacom CEO

It's been a rough ride for Bumblebee, starting with tragically low projected opening numbers, which sadly came true when the movie finally opened for general audiences in late December. But since the opening in China opposite Aquaman, the 'Bee Movie has started fighting back strong. In fact, while addressing an audience at the Citi TMT West Conference in Las Vegas, Bob Bakish, CEO of Paramount's parent company Viacom directly called the film "solidly profitable".

In the same statement, he compared it to The Last Knight, which he cited as losing Paramount in excess of $100 million. By comparison, Bumblebee's entire production budget was reportedly very close to that figure - with a portion of that bill even being footed by California as part of a deal where the movie would be filmed fully within the state. With that in mind, it's easy to see that Bumblebee had a comparatively shorter road out of the hole, and while it's already recognized as having gotten in the black already between domestic and worldwide box office numbers, there's a good chance it will have at least made back its budget in North America ticket sales by the time its theatrical engagement is concluded.

Despite that unsure and slow start, it looks like what a majority of viewers and critics have come to recognize as the best entry in the live action film series has finally gained some of the traction it deserves.