"Solo: A Star Wars Story" had a disappointing weekend at the box office, putting a damper on the much-anticipated story on the origins of Han Solo, one of the franchise's most enduring characters.
"Solo" pulled in $101 million domestically over its four-day weekend, making it the smallest "Star Wars" related opening since 2002 for "Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones," CNN reported.
While the film still was the biggest Memorial Day weekend debut in the past four years, "Solo" had faced "Star Wars" expectations, with the industry thinking more in the range of $130 million to 150 million in North America, CNN said.
For example, "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," the prequel to original "Star Wars," pulled in $290 million globally during its debut in December 2016. "Solo" brought in $148 million worldwide.
Forbes magazine's Scott Mendelson said while "Solo" may have taken some of the luster off Disney's "Star Wars" reboot, he believes talk of the franchise's death is premature.
"Now what should have been either a victory lap after three-straight $1 billion-plus hits or an acceptable mulligan is going to only add to the 'Egad, Star Wars is doomed' drumbeat," Mendelson said. "That's absurd, of course, as usually 'new' franchises that bust out of the gate with three $1 billion-plus releases aren't declared DOA after one under-$700 million installment."
Others agreed.
"Anytime the numbers come in lower than projections, there is a feeling of disappointment and the 'Star Wars" brand for better or worse is always subject to lofty box office expectations," Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore, told CNN. "That sometimes even puts a film that opens with around $100 million under scrutiny."
While some have mentioned that the "Solo" results were a sign of "Star Wars fatigue" among moviegoers, Dergarabegian argued that the franchise "will be fine."
"The long wait until 'Episode IX' is actually going to be a good thing for the franchise. ... a bit of breathing space is needed to build back up the huge excitement that every 'Star Wars' film deserves," he told CNN.