Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu opens with $165 million worldwide

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu brought in an estimated $165 million at the global box office over the four-day Memorial Day weekend. That total includes $102 million from the domestic market and $63 million from international earnings. The film is the first new Star Wars movie since the controversial The Rise of Skywalker in 2019, arriving after nearly seven years of Disney+ series, including The Mandalorian itself. Its box office performance is an important indicator of the Star Wars franchise’s relevance in 2026.

Box office performance

In the context of box office performance, it’s worth comparing this to earlier Star Wars films. Solo: A Star Wars Story, which lost money during its theatrical run, earned $103 million domestically during its four-day opening in 2018. That means The Mandalorian and Grogu has the weakest opening for a Star Wars film since Disney acquired the franchise in 2012, though only by $1 million.

The production budget for The Mandalorian and Grogu was $165 million. That’s lower than the budgets of earlier Star Wars films, but additional marketing costs still need to be taken into account.

Audience reception

Despite the disappointing box office numbers, there are positive signs for the film. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an 89% score on the user-generated Popcornmeter. That suggests that while the opening can’t be called a success, audiences are generally responding well to the movie.

Jeff Bock, a senior box office analyst, noted that Disney is hoping the film will help stabilize the Star Wars universe. That also raises the question of how The Mandalorian and Grogu will perform in its second, third, and fourth weekends in theaters. Solo ultimately finished with a global total of $392.9 million, which was considered a flop for a Star Wars film. It’s still unclear whether The Mandalorian and Grogu will surpass that figure.

Future Star Wars projects

Lucasfilm is pinning its hopes on the next Star Wars project, Star Wars: Starfighter, which is due out next year. Directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, the film is set after the events of The Rise of Skywalker. There is some concern that it’s becoming harder to attract younger audiences to Star Wars, a franchise that earlier generations embraced more naturally. Eric Handler, a senior media analyst, said interest in the franchise is still there, but revenue per film continues to decline.

It’s clear that the future of the Star Wars franchise faces challenges as interest among younger viewers declines. The question remains whether future films like Star Wars: Starfighter can refresh the franchise and connect with a new generation of viewers.