The underwhelming opening of Solo: A Star Wars Story is undoubtably a sign of things to come, as well as the fan backlash that came from The Last Jedi. Very soon, Lucasfilm will need to change something quickly before negativity towards Star Wars movies spirals out of control. There is a good chance nothing will change at Lucasfilm until after Episode IX comes out next year. The question is, will this negativity affect the crowds of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge?
Tweet
Maybe slightly, but probably not enough to make a significant difference. Between the level of interest in the land and how different it is from anything else Star Wars, I think even fans who may have been a bit turned off by the latest films will have a desire to visit the land. Additionally, I'm guessing most theme park visitors will want to check it out regardless of their interest level in the franchise. That said, I do think that if the movies and TV shows fail to connect to audiences it will negatively affect the longevity of Galaxy's Edge, which could cause problems further down the line. It's still going to be mobbed for the first year or two, but if the new Star Wars films lose their audience I wouldn't be surprised if Galaxy's Edge is less popular in 4-5 years than Wizarding World of Harry Potter is today.
I doubt it. Avatar is a movie that draws love from very few people, and Pandora still packs them in. Galaxy’s Edge will have no problem.
No, not at all.
Apart from the super SW fans (which will still be there in full force), this is still a brand new land, with brand new attractions.....and will pack in the crowds.
People who don't even like SW will still head straight to the land because its new (and will be on the cover of the park map, tv commercials, etc.) I know plenty of people who have never seen a HP movie or read a HP book & still enjoyed & visited WWHP multiple times.
SW is still immensely popular & even though the last 2 films may not have lived up to expectations (depending on who you ask), Galaxy's Edge will have no problem packing in the crowds. (Plus the next film isn't scheduled until the end of 2019, so movie audiences will have a bit of a break)
I was one who out right hated Avatar and never understood the love. I was still very much excited to visit Disney's new land. Same thing for Star Wars. The people will come regardless of mixed emotions on the recent films.
On a side note...Pandora disappointed me almost as much as the darn movie did. Sigh.
Where is all this "negativity" towards Solo? I think this is an extreme overreaction to a movie that underperformed under extreme conditions.
1. Rotten Tomatoes has Solo at 70% fresh, a positive rating. Sure, it's one of the lowest ratings for any Star Wars film, but it's well above many other summer blockbusters.
2. The movie received an "A-" Cinemascore by audiences, which again is the lowest of all the Star Wars movies, but not terrible when compared to typical summer popcorn fare.
3. Expectations for Solo were through the roof, which should have been tempered given the production issues and the fact that this was the shortest gap between Star Wars releases. While the MCU can sustain releases every 3-6 months, Star Wars fans are a bit more fickle, and trying to release a movie less than 6 months from the previous film in the universe was probably not the greatest idea.
I'm just not seeing a lot of "negativity" here. Certainly Solo did not incite the amount of excitement and passion as previous Disney Star Wars releases, but the worst reactions to this film seem to be "meh", which is probably best explained by the production issues and release schedule. Let's face it, when Miller and Lord were fired, this production was doomed when Kennedy held firm to the release date. Even a director as skillful as Ron Howard could not right the ship completely in time (for the record, I'm in the "meh" crowd for this movie).
Nonetheless, the reaction to Solo will not reduce or deteriorate the excitement and anticipation for Galaxy's Edge. These lands are poised to be the most popular theme park additions ever built, and the underperformance at the box office by a single troubled production will not change people's love for the franchise and desire to be immersed in it.
Fans Vs Disney Star Wars: The Current State of Things
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=35aEjj8C4Cg
Many old-school Star Wars fans are just getting burned out on the new movies. You'll see a lot of new-wave SW fans going to the parks though -- people who are growing up with the new movies now.
As someone who enjoyed the original trilogy and almost nothing that came after it, I have no plans to go to WDW explicitly to visit Star Wars land. I might check it out as part of a coincidental future trip, but not until the crowds die down and the initial newness wears off.
That doesn't mean it still won't be hugely successful though. I expect the Jar Jar and BB8 generations of fans to arrive in droves!
I think the franchise, even with Solo underperforming is just fine.
Ironically, I think this needed to happen. My personal option is that Disney is rolling these films out way to quickly. The time between the original trilogy (3 films) & the prequels (3 films) was 16 years. The time between the prequels & the first of the new trilogy was 10 years.
There were 6 films from 1977 to 2005......There have been 4 films between 2015 & 2018.
I feel time was one of the elements that helped these films (and their releases) become pop culture events.
The more releases you have, the less excited audiences are (The Marvel playbook doesn't really fit the blueprint for Star Wars)
Now, after stepping off my soap box, lol. I think this franchise is strong enough to weather an underperforming film (or even 2).
This discussion has been archived and is no longer accepting responses.
Nope!