Deadline have been doing some analysis and running a tournament to find the Most Valuable Blockbuster of 2017. Lucasfilm’s The Last Jedi has been named the victor.
Disney landed its fourth film in the top 10, hitting the top spot with the Rian Johnson-directed sequel to the J.J. Abrams Star Wars relaunch in 2015. Even though it would be hard to imagine eclipsing the relaunch’s gross — highest domestic grossing movie of all-time with $936M and third highest worldwide with $2.07 billion — The Last Jedi continued Disney’s year end dominance, to the point where the studio is sucking all the oxygen out of the holiday corridor. Its $220M opening was the second biggest ever (trailing only the $247.9M opening of The Force Awakens). Johnson, who previously directed the edgy indies Looper and Brick, didn’t serve up a by-the-numbers retread here. He killed off a beloved original character and left more questions than answers about the connection between Daisy Ridley’s Jedi Rey and Adam Driver’s villainous Kylo Ren. Some felt the edge might have shortened Last Jedi‘s legs, but that’s like criticizing an Aaron Judge home run because it hit a light post and didn’t clear Yankee Stadium. The Last Jedi was an enormous performer for Disney, with a $1.3 billion global gross. While LucasFilm removed top-tier young directors like Colin Trevorrow and Phil Lord & Chris Miller from the helm of other Star Wars films, Johnson was subsequently set in a deal to create a freestanding Star Wars branded trilogy, taking place in another galaxy with new characters. Clearly, Lucasfilm believes The Force is strong in this one.
Take the link to see the detail of their analysis.
