Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) entered 2026 with a strong slate of films for the box office, including its first theatrical Star Wars franchise film since 2019. That film is setting new franchise lows and could put pressure on Disney stock.
• Walt Disney stock is taking a breather. What’s ahead for DIS stock?
Disney Stumbles With "The Mandalorian and Grogu"
The first theatrical Star Wars film in seven years opened in theaters over the Memorial Day weekend. With high expectations ahead of the film's release, Disney shareholders could be feeling pressure.
The film opened with $98 million in North America over the four-day holiday weekend, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. Estimates from Disney say the film made closer to $100 million over the same time period.
"The Mandalorian and Grogu's" box office take set a new low for the franchise since Disney acquired the it in 2012. The film opened lower than the 2018 standalone "Solo: A Star Wars Story,” which opened to $103 million over the four-day Memorial Day weekend that year.
There is good news and bad news for the latest Star Wars film opening.
The good news was that this was only the first weekend, with a chance the film would trend higher in the coming weeks. The film's $63 million three-day international total was also on par with "Solo."
One of the most positive figures from the weekend is the film now has a four-day global gross of $167 million, ahead of a $165 million production budget for the film before marketing. "Solo" had a production budget of $265 million and, with a global box office total of $393 million, was viewed as a box office loss after production costs and the marketing budget.
The bad news is, of course, that the film's opening weekend significantly trails other Star Wars films released since Disney's acquisition in 2012.
The last Disney theatrical film was "The Rise of Skywalker," which grossed $515.2 million domestically and $1.07 billion worldwide. From 2015 through 2019, Disney released a Star Wars film each year. Here's a look at the box office success of those films:
- "Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens" (2015): $936.7 million domestic, $2.02 billion worldwide
- "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" (2016): $532.2 million domestic, $1.06 billion worldwide
- "Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi" (2017): $620.2 million domestically, $1.33 billion worldwide
- "Solo: A Star Wars Story" (2018): $213.8 million domestic, $392.9 million worldwide
- "Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker" (2019): $515.2 million domestic, $1.07 billion worldwide
Whether "The Mandalorian and Grogu" surges higher at the box office or ends up being an underperformer, Disney will likely benefit across its entertainment and theme park ecosystem. The film could help consumer product sales, theme park sales and future streaming revenue when the movie is released on Disney+.
Looking ahead, Disney also has several of the highest anticipated films for the rest of 2026, including "Toy Story 5" on June 19, a live-action "Moana" on July 10 and "Avengers: Doomsday" on Dec. 18.
Those movies could significantly outperform the latest Star Wars film and give shareholders reasons to forget about the return of Star Wars to theaters.
Movie Theaters Okay With Box Office Performance
AMC Entertainment Holdings (NYSE:AMC) may have wished for a bigger box office opening for "The Mandalorian and Grogu," but is celebrating the results just the same.
The movie theater leader said it had more than five million moviegoers over the holiday weekend, with its biggest Thursday through Monday attendance for the U.S. so far this year.
The latest Star Wars film is the fifth movie over the last two months to open with more than $75 million domestically, AMC said.
Along with strong movie admissions and food and beverage results, AMC also benefited from movie-themed merchandise like popcorn buckets. AMC said the film was the third-best movie-themed merchandise program in the movie theater's history.
Photo: Gennadii-1989 via Shutterstock
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