Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters reboot has triggered intense debate over its decision to refashion the proton pack-wielding paranormal investigators as an all-female team.

For some, the film has been a feminist rallying cry; for others, a pop culture desecration. It’s also provided ample opportunity for internet trolls to engage in some misogyny.

After all the chatter and the gender politics, Ghostbusters debuted this weekend to a solid $46 million from 3,962 locations. Sony hailed the results as evidence that audiences were responding to its new take on the decades-old property. But though it ranks as the best debut for a live-action comedy in over a year, the film will have to show some endurance, as well as resonate with foreign audiences, to make a profit.

After all, dusting off the ectoplasm was expensive, with Sony shelling out $144 million to make Ghostbusters and millions more to market the film. That tops what most comedies cost to produce and distribute.

Sony has been trying to get another Ghostbusters off the ground for decades, but it has often been the victim of original star Bill Murray’s mercurial vetting process. The new picture, which brings together Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones, is clearly designed to trigger a fresh array of sequels.

However, Ghostbusters was no match for Illumination and Universal’s The Secret Life of Pets, which dominated the box office for a second consecutive weekend, topping all challengers with $50.6 million. The look at what dogs, cats and other domesticated critters do when their owners are at work is one of the summer’s biggest smashes, having earned $203.2 million stateside. It will likely inspire a new family film franchise, and is simply the latest in a long line of hits featuring talking animals.

In third place, Warner Bros’ The Legend of Tarzan swung to $11.1 million, pushing its domestic total to $103.1 million.