The Rise of Skywalker suffered a real weekend drop in its fourth weekend of release. From $34.5 million last weekend, it was at $15.1 million, a representation of a 56.2% dropping. The film kicked off mid-December with $177 million, but to date, it has had three consecutive drops.
The turn of events has resulted in conflicting opinions from the real world and the WhatCulture offices. For those who loved the movie, sending off of J.J. Abrams was an abomination, but those who loathed it cheered the move.
Was the decision to move its release from May to December 2019 a miscalculation?
Initially, the movie was scheduled for a release in May 2019. However, this did not materialize until December 2019. This was considered a smart move, and the idea was to tap into the holiday weeks when both children and workers had more time.
However, things did not turn out as expected, and no one foresaw the seemingly awkward drops. The movie had an underperformance during the Christmas season and has since been labeled a “box office disappointment.”
It is believed that Disney spent $275 million in setting up the film. In return, it was expected to bring in about $225 million in its opening weekend and eventually $550 million and $750 million entirely. This was not the case because only $177 million was collected despite opening during “an advantageous holiday calendar.” Surprisingly, the numbers would only become lower.
But The Rise of Skywalker is not the “first $1 billion disappointment.”
Despite having encountered a rough beginning, The Rise of Skywalker is not the only movie, which has suffered consistent drops. Other powerful films such as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice also fell in its fourth Fri-Sun frame with a 61%. The Jungle Book, whose launch was worth $103 million, fell 91.4%.
Nonetheless, the Rise of Skywalker may not have attained the $1 billion mark, but there is still a sizeable audience for Star Wars. This means there is still hope even though Star Wars’ growth in China is still wanting. Meanwhile, Disney may have to make drastic decisions moving forward to salvage the franchise.
