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A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Monday 18 deceMber 2017
‘The Last Jedi’ opens with $220M, 2nd best weekend all-time

By JAKE COYLE sor, “The Force Awakens.”
AP Film Writer The Disney blockbuster be-
NEW YORK (AP) — “Star came just the fourth film
Wars: The Last Jedi” will to open above $200 mil-
happily settle for second. lion domestically. Aside
Rian Johnson’s second in- from “The Force Awakens”
stallment in the third “Star ($248.8 million), the oth-
Wars” trilogy rocketed to a ers are “The Avengers”
debut of $220 million at the ($207.4 million) and “Juras-
North American box office, sic World” ($208.8 million).
according to studio esti- Accounting for inflation,
mates Sunday. That gives the debut of 2012’s “The
“The Last Jedi” the second- Avengers” would roughly
best opening ever, slotting tie with “The Last Jedi.”
in behind only its predeces- “The Last Jedi” is off to a This image released by Lucasfilm shows Daisy Ridley as Rey in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.” “Star
Wars: The Last Jedi” is off to a death star-sized start at the box office.
Associated Press
similar start overseas, too, and grossed in total little small screen,” said Paul
with $230 million in inter- more than $1 billion glob- Dergarabedian, senior me-
national ticket sales, said ally. dia analyst for comScore.
Disney. That brings its three- Johnson, who wrote and “Rian Johnson has made a
day global haul to $450 mil- directed, instead aimed to movie that showcases the
lion. distinguish “The Last Jedi” movie theater experience
The opening also gave the by introducing some new in a truly brilliant way.”
Walt Disney Co. the oppor- tones to George Lucas’ Signaling its faith in John-
tunity to flex its muscles on space opera. “The Last son’s course for “Star
the heels of the deal an- Jedi” is more irreverent than Wars,” Lucasfilm earlier an-
nounced Thursday for it to previous chapters. And it nounced that Johnson will
purchase 21st Century Fox has drawn plaudits for its di- develop the next trilogy
for $52.4 billion. As part of verse cast, including Daisy for the franchise, the first of
the deal, Disney will take Ridley, John Boyega and which he’ll write and direct.
control of 20th Century Fox, newcomer Kelly Marie Tran. Abrams is set to return to di-
one of Hollywood’s six ma- “The results speak to the rect Episode IX after he was
jor studios. power of representation,” brought in to replace Colin
“The weekend that we’re in said Hollis. “The film really Trevorrow. A separate spi-
is a byproduct of the fore- reflects our world and be- noff centered on a young
sight and vision from our yond. It becomes some- Han Solo is due out next
CEO Bob Iger to bring Lu- thing people can see them- summer.
casfilm into the fold,” said selves in, whether they see The massive debut for “The
Disney distribution chief themselves in Rey or Finn Last Jedi” singlehandedly
Dave Hollis, alluding to or Poe or Rose or Captain brightens what has been a
Disney’s 2012 purchase of Phasma. They can relate to disappointing year for Hol-
Lucasfilm. “So as we think all those characters.” lywood. The weekend was
about the possibility of oth- Johnson’s approach has far and away the highest
er things being added, you seemed to work. Critics grossing of the year. Ac-
can’t help but be excited gave Johnson’s film a 93 cording to comScore, the
about the possibilities.” percent fresh rating on Rot- industry was down about
Fox, as it happens, was the ten Tomatoes. Audiences 3.9 percent from last year
only studio to open anoth- endorsed it, too, with an A before this weekend. Now
er new wide-release film CinemaScore, though not it’s 2.9 percent off the 2016
against “The Last Jedi.” Its all fans are on board with pace. Dergarabedian es-
family film, “Ferdinand,” Johnson’s innovations. As timates the year will end
was essentially stampeded of Sunday, “The Last Jedi” about 2 percent down with
by “The Last Jedi,” grossing has scored a dismal 56 a little over $11 billion in
$13.3 million. “Ferdinand” percent rating from some ticket sales.
and other upcoming holi- 95,000 Rotten Tomato users. “The Last Jedi” may be
day season releases will Yet the haul for “The Last playing the role of savior
look for more room in the Jedi” dwarfed most all at the box office, but the
coming weeks, once the releases in the two years news isn’t all rosy for exhibi-
“Star Wars” tsunami has since “The Force Awakens.” tors. Given the demand,
waned. By comparison, it has in Disney put more onerous
While Abrams’ reboot three days already bested demands on some theater
capitalized on a decade’s the five-week gross of War- owners for “The Last Jedi,”
hiatus for “Star Wars,” John- ner Bros.’ “Justice League” including a higher percent-
son’s sequel didn’t have ($219.5 million). age — 65 percent — of
the same benefit of fresh- “Seeing a movie like this ticket sales. And Disney’s
ness. It follows not only “The in the movie theater, get- acquisition of Fox is seen by
Force Awakens” (which ting the collective goose analysts as a bid, in part,
ultimately grossed $2.1 bil- bumps and having the to strengthen the studio’s
lion) but last year’s spinoff, OMG-moments, that’s in-development streaming
“Rogue One.” That release something you cannot platform, set to debut in
opened with $155.1 million, replicate at home on the 2019.q