Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is a major flop in China
Could the final installment in the iconic Skywalker saga become the lowest-grossing Star Wars film ever?
It’s no overestimation to say that Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was one of 2019’s most anticipated films. The third entry in what we’re now calling the Star Wars sequel trilogy and final offering of the franchise’s iconic Skywalker saga, fans all over have been intrigued to see how it all ends for the legendary space opera.
In spite of mixed reviews, the J.J. Abrams film has performed well in the global box office, earning $176 million domestically and $198 internationally in its opening weekend for an overall gross of $373 million. However, it failed to impress in China.
Yes, the film that everyone is talking about only managed to gross $12 million in its opening weekend which, by all counts, is rather startling.
Now, given the fact that for some reason, the iconic franchise doesn’t seem to have the drawing power in China that it possesses elsewhere, low takings were inevitable. That part isn’t shocking. What is shocking however is just how low they are.
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2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens performed respectably in the country, bringing in $124 million which at the time was seen as a disappointment given how large the Chinese market was. 2017 spin-off Rogue One brought in $69 million – not great but understandable given that it wasn’t directly part of the Skywalker saga, but the decline continued later that year with Skywalker sequel The Last Jedi earning just over $42 million. And it was all capped off by spin-off Solo: A Star Wars Story‘s dismal $16 million (an underrated film that ultimately bombed in the global market).
While the Star Wars saga just isn’t as popular with moviegoers in China as it is elsewhere, it’s still shocking to see such a huge entry of the Skywalker story perform so poorly. According to Forbes, analysts have predicted that The Rise of Skywalker may have problems reaching $20 million. And if that’s the case, it may not even surpass Solo and could end up becoming the franchise’s lowest grossing installment in China.
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Are you shocked to hear that The Rise of Skywalker flopped in China? How well were you expecting it to do? Let us know in the comments below!