Big franchises don't necessarily bring in ticket sales or favorable reviews. Hollywood's sci-fi-action film "Men in Black: International" appears to be a new case of the so-called franchise fatigue. 

The new installment earned 25.7 million U.S. dollars during its first weekend, according to Maoyan.com, China's largest online film ticket service website. The three previous "Men in Black" films all opened to over 50 million U.S. dollars.

Although tickets sales were less than expected, the fourth sequel still topped the box office revenue on the Chinese mainland last week. It tells the story of two agents in London who wipe out the provocateur in their organization to win the war against the aliens.

Some moviegoers commented on Chinese social media that the film's storyline lacks complexity and is not really impressive. Meanwhile, others said it provides some new angles, such as building the image of a female hero instead of the male dominance in previous stories.

With little resonance with audiences, Sony Pictures may not be able to recoup its reported 110-million-U.S.-dollar production budget.

"Men in Black: International" is among a slew of under-performing sequels Hollywood has released this summer. Rebooted films like "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" and "X-Men: Dark Phoenix" all hit record-low incomes compared with previous stories.

Feature films make their mark

Teen movie "My Best Summer" locked in the second spot at the Chinese box office with an income of 19.5 million U.S. dollars last week, bringing its total tickets revenue to nearly 46 million U.S. dollars.

Adapted from a popular novel of the same name, the movie depicts the lives and romances of high school students.

"A City Called Macau" by renowned Chinese director Li Shaohong came in sixth with earnings of four million U.S. dollars.

Based on a novel by Yan Geling, the film starts with a woman who takes her son to Macao to start a new life away from her husband. She meets three men who change her life forever.

Yan is one of the most influential writers in China. Plenty of her novels have been adapted to movies, such as "Youth" and "The Flowers of War."

Russian film "3 Seconds" ranked No. 9 with a ticket income of about three million U.S. dollars. It's scored 8.3 on Douban.com and 9.6 on Maoyan.com – two influential film review websites in China.

Based on a true story, the film depicts the men's basketball final at the 1972 Munich Olympics. To everybody’s surprise, the Soviet Union team defeats its U.S. rival, who had maintained the championship for a straight 36 years.

Highly anticipated animations for next week

Among the 10 films to be released next week, animations "Spirited Away" and "Toy Story 4" are the most popular.

Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, "Spirited Away" is the world's only animated film that has won both an Oscar and a Golden Bear award. It opens on June 21.

In “Toy Story 4,” the characters, for the first time, start their adventure away from the places they are familiar with. It’ll be released on June 21 as well.