As you know if you've been following along, The Empire Strikes Back and Attack of the Clones both did around 70% of the business (worldwide and domestic) that Star Wars and The Phantom Menace did in their initial theatrical releases. So the notion that The Last Jedi is a disappointment because it is clearly going to make a lot less than The Force Awakens is... silly. I discussed this a little under two years ago, when The Force Awakens wrapped up its run, that "part 1" of the previous Star Wars trilogies were far and away the biggest of the bunch. So, yes, The Last Jedi may have to settle for an under $700 million domestic total and an under $1.5 billion global cume. I think Lucasfilm will survive.
The Last Jedi earned an additional $24.68 million on its second Friday, a sharp 76.4% drop from its $105m opening day. That's a lot, bigger than most top-tier MCU movies and not close enough for comfort to the 67% drop for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story last year. And while it may be a record Fri-to-Fri drop for a Star Wars movie, the prequels had worse "opening day to day eight" drops in their respective runs. Phantom Menace opened on a Wednesday and fell 72% on its second Wednesday. Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith opened on Thursdays and fell 78% and 81% on their respective second Thursdays.
The Last Jedi earned an additional $24.68 million on its second Friday, a sharp 76.4% drop from its $105m opening day. That's a lot, bigger than most top-tier MCU movies and not close enough for comfort to the 67% drop for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story last year. And while it may be a record Fri-to-Fri drop for a Star Wars movie, the prequels had worse "opening day to day eight" drops in their respective runs. Phantom Menace opened on a Wednesday and fell 72% on its second Wednesday. Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith opened on Thursdays and fell 78% and 81% on their respective second Thursdays.
