The Mandalorian and Grogu has lost the box office battle to a surprising contender. The newest Star Wars movie faltering at the box office shows how far the franchise has dropped, and why it might be time for a new era.
In surprising news, the latest box office results showed that The Mandalorian and Grogu had been beaten by upstart horror hit Obsession. As of the time of this writing, Obsession has crossed over the $160 million threshold, topping The Mandalorian and Grogu ($158 million). While both movies are still playing at the theaters, Obsession has out-earned the movie for some time now, so it’d be a shock if The Mandalorian and Grogu caught up.
The news itself isn’t too shocking. Obsession has been a massive hit out of nowhere, and seems primed to break the Blair Witch Project’s record for most successful film festival acquisition ever at the box office. However, even with Obsession’s breakout status, the fact that the latest Star Wars movie has earned so little suggests it’s time to change things up.
Star Wars faltering at the box office suggests that change is needed
Back in the day, a new Star Wars movie meant instant success at the box office. Even films that were largely criticized like 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story were almost guaranteed to cross $200 million domestically. However, The Mandalorian and Grogu looks to mark a new low for the franchise. Assuming the movie doesn’t earn an additional $40 million soon stateside, the movie’s domestic return will become a new low for the franchise.
It’s a shocking return for the movie, which was coming off the back of a wildly popular Disney+ show starring a huge name in Pedro Pascal. However, the lukewarm reaction to the movie both critically and commercially shows that Star Wars has fallen a bit since its heyday. The franchise remains incredibly popular, but doesn’t seem to draw the command of new audience members like it used to. The fact that so many of its recent projects (excluding the incredible Andor) have been viewed as more middling than exciting, and the franchise could use a big change.
For me, this comes in the form of big change. One of Star Wars’ biggest issues is how keen it is to hold onto the past. Most of the projects out now revolve heavily around the same stories we’ve all come to know, albeit with a few twists here and there. While it’s fun to see expanded stories of the Hutts or a creature or two we recognize now and again in a movie or show, it’s time for the franchise to move into the unknown.
Star Wars was at its best when fans largely knew nothing about the stories being told, and could be wowed and amazed at what was happening. It’s for this reason why the next Star Wars movie, Star Wars: Starfighter, is my most anticipated project in the franchise. Taking place after the events of The Rise of Skywalker, Starfighter seems to be creating its own story, free from past connections of Star Wars while retaining many of what we love about the franchise.
The power of nostalgia is great, but leaning too far into it results in new stories not feeling meaningful in any way. As fun as The Mandalorian and Grogu was, it ultimately just felt like a fun movie, and not the event that Star Wars has become known to be. If we want to get back to that, then we have to start moving forward.
