Highlights
- Star Wars has had its ups and downs at the box office, with some movies making a big splash and others flopping.
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars didn’t do well in theaters, acting more as a pilot for a TV series with a focus on Anakin and his padawan.
- Solo: A Star Wars Story, despite being enjoyable, was Disney’s first Star Wars flop, possibly due to a post-Last Jedi release.
It has been over 47 years since audiences from around the world were introduced to Star Wars, providing a lens into a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Since that time, Star Wars has been on quite the rollercoaster, and whilst most Star Wars content is produced for streaming, there have still been plenty of movies for audiences to enjoy, with many more well on their way.
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Despite the global appeal and resounding success of most Star Wars movies, not all of them are regarded with such high caliber, and there have even been the odd couple of Star Wars flops. However, out of the 12 Star Wars movies available so far, some of them have managed to make an incredible splash at the box office.
12 Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Worldwide Gross: $68,282,844
- Release Date: 15 August 2008
- Director: Dave Filoni
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 19%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 40%
Star Wars enters the 3D animated medium to provide a canon look into the years before Revenge of the Sith during the Clone Wars era. With a focus on Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and his new responsibilities as a sassy Padawan learner, Ahsoka Tano, Star Wars: The Clone Wars would act more as a demo and pilot for a TV series than something worthy of movie quality.
It’s no surprise that The Clone Wars didn’t do well at all at the box office compared to other Star Wars movies, as many might have been confused as to what it was. With stylistic CGI that developed further over time as a show, and extremely childish themes and plot, The Clone Wars movie didn’t have much to do for a franchise that just saw Anakin Skywalker burn alive on Mustafar.
11 Solo: A Star Wars Story
Worldwide Gross: $392,924,807
- Release Date: 25 May 2018
- Director: Ron Howard
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 69%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 63%
Star Wars takes audiences back in time to a prequel involving Han Solo’s defining adventure before his death at the hands of his son. Solo: A Star Wars Story acts as a pretty risky movie, as not only does it show audiences the defining Kessel run, a meeting of Han and Chewie, who shot first, and many other Star Wars classics, but it also changed directors during production.
Even with the muddles from behind the scenes, Solo: A Star Wars Story is still an enjoyable ride, and the soul of Star Wars feels very present, Alden Ehrenreich does a great job as a charismatic and younger Han Solo, not to mention the stellar Billy Dee Williams’ Lando from Donald Glover. Sadly, Solo was Disney’s first Star Wars flop, and it’s most likely attributed to a post-Last Jedi release and a lack of care in origin stories.
10 Star Wars: Episode 6 – Return of the Jedi
Worldwide Gross: $475,106,177
- Release Date: 25 May 1983
- Director: Richard Marquand
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 82%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 94%
After the traumatic end of The Empire Strikes Back, Luke Skywalker returns, having learned from his mistakes and developing as a Jedi to save Han Solo from the clutches of Jabba the Hutt, so that together, they can finish off the Empire and rid the galaxy of Darth Vader and the elusive Emperor Palpatine. Return of the Jedi is a triumphant conclusion to the story of Anakin Skywalker and a wonderful goodbye to the galaxy far, far away.
Return of the Jedi is an epic conclusion to the original trilogy, and the culmination of the greatest space fantasy couldn’t be denied by audiences who came in droves. Becoming the highest-grossing movie of 1983, Return of the Jedi was unstoppable, but perhaps word of cuddly teddy bears beating Stormtroopers into surrendering affected the box office draw somewhat, as it made less than previous entries.
9 Star Wars: Episode 5 – The Empire Strikes Back
Worldwide Gross: $538,375,067
- Release Date: May 21, 1980
- Director: Irvin Kershner
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 95%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 97%
After Star Wars took over the world, it was inevitable that a sequel deserved to be made. The adventures in the Star Wars galaxy continued with a grander scale in terms of emotion, character growth, and spectacle. Despite the fact that The Empire Strikes Back does practically everything better, it surprisingly made less money than its predecessor.
Despite not making the same amount as A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back still outperformed everything for 1980, and remained one of the highest-grossing movies of its decade, and that’s not even accounting for if it was adjusted for inflation. The Empire Strikes Back is regarded as the peak of Star Wars’ potential for a reason, and box office gross doesn’t equate to amazement.
8 Star Wars: Episode 2 – Attack of the Clones
Worldwide Gross: $645,256,452
- Release Date: 16 May 2002
- Director: George Lucas
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 65%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 56%
Star Wars embraces a hefty time skip with Attack of the Clones and presents a decade-older Obi-Wan and Anakin Skywalker and their disjointed Master/Padawan relationship. The movie embraces some of Anakin’s darker tendencies and indulges in the awkward and forbidden love that he shares with Padme Amidala, providing a central love story for the series.
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Attack of the Clones was the lowest-grossing of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, but it still impresses with its action spectacle and clone armies. Count Dooku easily holds as one of the more interesting antagonists of the series, and to see Yoda with a lightsaber is the epitome of cool. The low box office numbers might come from the disappointment with The Phantom Menace, or simply the fact that it was competing with Spider-Man, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
7 Star Wars: Episode 4 – A New Hope
Worldwide Gross: $775,398,507
- Release Date: May 25, 1977
- Director: George Lucas
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 93%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 96%
The movie that started it all, Star Wars would open to electrifying results in 1977, and would dominate the silver screen for a reason. The intimidating stature of Darth Vader and the evil Imperial Forces were iconic and villainous, and the heroic trio of Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Leia Organa had the defining characteristics of heroism and chemistry.
The undisputed king of the box office for the 1970s was Star Wars, later retitled A New Hope. Star Wars truly changed the game, providing hopeful stories, and wonderous action with a sci-fi serial flair that went deeper than what was just on screen. Star Wars’ success was inevitable with the assortment of aliens, themes, and weaponry presented in the movie, providing spectacle for kids and adults alike for decades to come.
6 Star Wars: Episode 3 – Revenge of the Sith
Worldwide Gross: $868,352,530
- Release Date: 19 May 2005
- Director: George Lucas
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 79%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 66%
The end of the Clone Wars is nigh, and with it, comes the finale of the Skywalker Saga, showing fans the fated duel of heroes that created Darth Vader and the birth of Luke Skywalker. The hype for Star Wars couldn’t have been higher than its potential finale for 2005, and there’s proof of that in the stellar box office numbers for that year (which were beaten by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire).
Fans wanted to see the conclusion of the franchise and to see the events that made Anakin Skywalker embrace the Dark Side and become Darth Vader. Revenge of the Sith did not disappoint, as it indulged heavily in action and lightsaber battles, as well as character drama that has only been further enriched over the years thanks to investment in The Clone Wars.
5 Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace
Worldwide Gross: $924,305,084
- Release Date: May 19, 1999
- Director: George Lucas
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 52%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 59%
Decades of waiting saw Star Wars return to the big screen, and the franchise would be given an origin point to follow the story of the Jedi in their prime and to see the relationship of Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi unfold through action and tragedy. It’s not a shocker to see how successful The Phantom Menace was in 1999, as Star Wars was on top of the world, and the hype was at an all-time high.
The desire to see the likes of Darth Maul, and to get more lightsaber action was at the height, but there were some concerns with the franchise. Not only was there a reliance on political babble and awkward dialogue but there was an experimental CGI character that made a tad too many jokes. Either way, The Phantom Menace has grown in audiences in recent years thanks to its classic status and nostalgia from younger fans now grown up.
4 Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Worldwide Gross: $1,058,684,742
- Release Date: 16 December 2016
- Director: Gareth Edwards
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 84%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 87%
For the first time in the Star Wars franchise, the Skywalker family is left behind for something new, but familiar. No Jedi are here to save the day, and Rogue One provides an intense lens into the conflict of the galaxy with the oppressive heel of the Empire choking life, and the dreaded planet-destroying Death Star well on its way to creation.
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The stakes are high, and the diverse cast of characters makes for an excellent watch. Rogue One may not have made as much money as the main episodic Star Wars movies, but for a rag-tag group set on a plan to steal the plans to the Death Star, it’s a resounding success for the box office, and worth it for the Darth Vader hallway scene alone.
3 Star Wars: Episode 9 – The Rise of Skywalker
Worldwide Gross: $1,074,144,248
- Release Date: 20 December 2019
- Director: J.J. Abrams
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 51%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 86%
The finale of the Skywalker Saga saw the Resistance come up against the First Order, with Rey and Kylo Ren’s fates forever entwined as an old enemy emerges from the darkest corners of the galaxy. Somehow, Emperor Palpatine returned, but it seemed that not even this iconic foe that was bested by Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker could provide the franchise with its top-grossing movie.
Over a billion dollars is still an incredible achievement, but compared to other Star Wars movies in the Disney era, The Rise of Skywalker did the least, which is surprising for a finale. Many factors may be involved. Dwindling interest, soured expectations from previous entries, or simply the cost of movie tickets in 2019.
2 Star Wars: Episode 8 – The Last Jedi
Worldwide Gross: $1,332,539,889
- Release Date: 15 December 2017
- Director: Rian Johnson
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 91%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 41%
Continuing directly from where The Force Awakens left off, The Last Jedi attempts to do something new and subvert the expectations of fans, which isn’t exactly something it managed to pull off well in the eyes of many. Decades of waiting have led to this moment, where Luke Skywalker finally returns on-screen, only it’s not the legend that people thought he is, and he is instead a hermit who has chosen seclusion.
The movie is mainly about understanding the concepts of war, betrayal, and what it means to be a Jedi, but the steam that the franchise had with The Force Awakens might have run out, especially with word of mouth. Whilst The Last Jedi still had impressive box office numbers, it made over $700,000,000 less than The Force Awakens.
1 Star Wars: Episode 7 – The Force Awakens
Worldwide Gross: $2,068,223,624
- Release Date: 18 December 2015
- Director: J.J. Abrams
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 93%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 84%
There was a time when Star Wars was on top of the world, and the return of the franchise with The Force Awakens proved the potential for new stories in a familiar universe. After decades, fans were reintroduced to iconic concepts like the Force, lightsabers, and the Millennium Falcon, as well as the return of some fan-favorite characters like Han Solo and Leia Organa. It’s no wonder that The Force Awakens made so much money.
The Force Awakens seemed like a return to form for the franchise, with lovingly crafted practical effects and recognizable props, the movie had the feel of Star Wars, but not the story. Most of The Force Awakens felt like a retread of A New Hope, but that familiarity and hype is probably what made it so successful.
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Fuente: successacademy.edu.vn
Categorías: Trend
