Ninja Turtles' Sequel Stalls Out On Paramount, 'Me Before You' Surprises For Warner Bros.

The box office gives, and it takes away.

This weekend, that scenario happened to Paramount (Viacom, Inc. NASDAQ: VIAB)) when its "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" sequel "Out of the Shadows" faded over its opening three-day frame. The film struggled, despite a late surge to push its total to $35 million.

The problem for Paramount, though, is that the new "Turtles" cost $135 million to produce, and the original put up an opening total of over $60 million. "Shadows" was seen as the next step in re-creating the successful "TMNT" trilogy that succeeded at the box office in the '90s.

Related Link: Paramount's "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out Of The Shadows" Domestic Box Office Winner With $35.2M Gross

Conversely, Warner Bros. (Time Warner Inc TWX) saw its weekend entrant "Me Before You" surprise, as the romantic drama headlined by "Game of Thrones" stunner Emilia Clarke opened to over $18 million. The film was originally supposed to bow in the spring, but Warner and partner MGM saw something special in it and took a smart chance.

This weekend, three more films enter the fray including Lions Gate's "Now You See Me 2," Universal's "Warcraft" and New Line/WB sequel "The Conjuring 2."