Star Wars Han Solo FLOP: Last Jedi BACKLASH to blame for fan BOYCOTT? Disney speaks out

Are hardcore Star Wars fans still angry about The Last Jedi? Is the Star Wars movie universe losing its magic and, more crucially, its devoted fanbase?

After a very difficult 18 months, the second Anthology movie finally hit screens with warm reviews and optimistic box office predictions suggesting a $150million opening weekend in the US.

Alden Ehrenreich is receiving praise for bringing Harrison Ford’s iconic character to young life, Donald Glover is stealing every scene as ‘pansexual’ Lando Calrissian and the film is extremely respectful of the iconic legacy of its characters – so what has gone so badly wrong? 

The movie scraped just past $100million and overseas performances were even more disappointing. The movie had a disastrous $10million opening in China – for contrast, Avengers Infinity War took $258million – and only hit $68million internationally.

For the first time ever, a Star Wars movie is being referred to as ‘a flop.’

The numbers would be hugely respectable for most movies, but even Rogue One with no iconic leading characters took $158million in its US opening and another $178million overseas.

Is there general box office fatigue after a string a major releases like Deadpool 2 and Infinity War with Jurassic World 2 and The Incredibles 2 on the horizon – or is this a specifically Star Wars issue?

Many dedicated fans, still furious after Star Wars 8, are convinced that Disney and Lucasfilm bosses need to listen to their complaints and frustrations and appear to be using their wallets to hammer the point home.

Star Wars Youtube expert Mike Zeroh says: “I definitely believe that at least big part has to do with the Solo: A Star Wars Story boycott based on the Last Jedi backlash, based on decisions by both Rian Johnson and Kathleen Kennedy.”

This seems perfectly likely, with many fans still feeling betrayed betrayed by the radical Episode 8 reboot, which may have also dimmed their enthusiasm for anything else set in the same universe.

This is partucularly unfortunate for the Solo movie, which is conversely hugely respectful of the franchise’s legacy and history.

There is also the issue that The Last Jedi only hit cinemas six months ago. It seems a little too soon for a return to a galaxy far, far away, especially when the fanbase is still massively divided. 

Dave Hollis, President, Theatrical Distribution, The Walt Disney Studios said: “There is a question of frequency in how many times people will go to the movies. Is this too much too soon for a third time in a five-week period.

“We came into the beginning of the year with this one of the most anticipated films. We gotta spend some time looking at the exits (final box office) and get a better handle on all the questions.”

Of course, Disney is also responsible for Avengers 3, and they will weigh up the impact of their various studios and franchises on each other, but there still seems to be little acknowledgement of the damaging effect The Last Jedi may have had on a huge part of the fan base.

SOLO A STAR WARS STORY IS OUT NOW