sandra bullock
U.S. Film director Paul Feig and actress Sandra Bullock (L) pose for the media during a photocall to promote their latest movie 'The Heat' in Berlin June 18, 2013. Reuters

‘The Heat,’ starring Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy, who played Molly in CBS sitcom Mike & Molly, is riding on good reviews from critics as it heads to the box office on Friday.

The storyline of ‘The Heat,’ directed by Paul Feig, follows the tried-and-tested path of every buddy cop movie where two law enforcement officers who dislike each other are forced to work together to solve a crime.

But, what’s unique about ‘The Heat’ when compared to other buddy cop movies, which is considered a Hollywood staple, is that it introduces an unlikely pair as female leads.

"The fact that 'The Heat' is the only studio film coming out this summer that has women in lead roles is almost a backslide," Feig told Reuters. "More people have to join me in the quest,” to make movies with women in lead roles, he said.

Feig, the director of Oscar-nominated movie ‘Bridesmaids,’ told Access Hollywood that a sequel to ‘The Heat’ is already in the works.

"It screams a sequel to me. I would love to get these two ladies together again. I want to see them out fighting crime and making people laugh in other situations, so fingers crossed," he said.

Critics have largely favored ‘The Heat,’ with Rotten Tomatoes, the movie aggregator, rating the flick an average of 6.1 on 10.

The New York Post predicted that the movie is guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser as it provides “enough opportunity for wholesale mayhem as well as laughs.” The Post gave the flick three out of four stars, stating that although Katie Dippold’s script is generic, it gives plenty of room for the stars to “demonstrate their positively combustible comic chemistry.”

Forbes too foresees a decent opening for the movie, saying, “Director Paul Feig stands to become the go-to guy for big-screen comedies, especially those with female protagonists.”