The Force wobbles as new Star Wars movie suffers lowest ever opening box office takinga

The Force is not strong with The Mandalorian And Grogu movie which blasted off with the lowest ever opening weekend receipts for a Star Wars movie. Despite hitting No1 at the box office the Pedro Pascal adventure marked the franchise's worst ever performance at the cinema with a $165million global box office total (£122million). That figure failed to beat Solo - widely considered a flop due to its massive budget - which made $171m globally in the same opening weekend back in 2018, even before adjusting for inflation. America's four-day Memorial day weekend is seen as a major outlier for summer theatre figures, but it can also predict a tough year ahead when big franchises don't go down so well.

The Mandalorian And Grogu, which continues from the Disney + series about baby Yoda and its helmeted protector, received average reviews from the critics who appreciated the effects but felt it lacked the cinematic 'event' magic of past Star Wars movies. However, cinema goers have been more positive and it is expected to make a sizeable profit over the summer, and the results reflect a change in viewing habits across all movies. The Mandalorian and Grogu’s box office takings are “not on the level of the primary Star Wars films,” industry analyst David Gross told Agence France-Presse.

However, he did concede: “But these are big numbers and this is how spin-offs perform. The movie is a piece of the story, and it’s earning a piece of the business.” A number of Star Wars spin-off movies were shelved following the failure of Solo which ended up making $392.9m at the global box office in 2018.

However, Lucasfilm are gearing up for a new wave of stories set in a galaxy Far Far Away with Ryan Gosling set to hit the big screen next year in Star Wars: Starfighter a new project from Deadpool director Shawn Levy. There are also plans for a number of new trilogies plus a stand-alone film centering on Rey - last seen in The Rise Of Skywalker which, despite making a fortune, was panned by both critics and fans. The untitled project will follow Rey Skywalker as she works to rebuild the Jedi Order. The days of a billion dollar receipts for the Star Wars franchise may never return due to the way people consume movies plus a general 'fatigue' due to too many franchise movies and a lot of Star Wars on Disney + streaming service.

The Mandalorian is the most-watched original series on Disney+ and more than 13million Grogu toys have been sold since the show first aired in 2019. Have you joined Threads? Follow Daily Star to keep up to date on all things showbiz here Want all the biggest Showbiz and TV news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our free Daily Star Showbiz newsletter