Maybe they should start calling it The Plunge of Skywalker instead.
Following a massive opening weekend, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has seen a significant drop-off in attendance over the following weeks. While the movie is still a huge blockbuster that’s slated to shoot past the one billion mark soon enough, it could still be looked at as a troubling trend for the once-dominant franchise.
The pic dropped a cringeworthy 59.2% from its first to its second weekend, followed by a whopping 81% in week three. In financial terms, this means the latest entry in the series fell from $177 million domestically in its opening weekend to only $72 million domestically the next. That’s more than a $100 million drop-off, with the third weekend only pulling in $33.7 million.
It’s worth noting that the film is still a mega hit for Disney and this plunge is not entirely unusual, especially for a movie in this particular intergalactic franchise. Star Wars pics have a history of falling off at the box office every week since fans have a tradition of all coming out on opening weekend. The Last Jedi, for example, dropped a zaftig 67.5% between its first and second weekend.
Then again, this is definitely not what the studio was hoping to see and it doesn’t look like The Rise of Skywalker will come anywhere near The Force Awakens in terms of total box office gross. This has to be a bit of disappointment, too, considering that the last movie in a trilogy typically sends fans flocking to the theater in massive numbers.
Regardless, the film’s far from a flop and will likely be one of the highest-grossing releases of the year. Still, it has to be a bit of a concern that Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker fell well short of expectations and no doubt Disney are now rethinking their future plans.
