Summary
TheStar Warsfranchise frustratingly keeps learning the wrong lessons from the failures of Lucasfilm. Since the release of thefirstStar Warsmoviein 1977, the franchise has easily become one of the most successful in cinematic, television, and publishing history. Lucasfilm’s franchise is almost unprecedented in its transmedia success, from thebox office numbers ofStar Warsmoviesto the continued success of books, novels, games, and other media elements set in a galaxy far, far away.
Similarly, the continued output ofupcomingStar WarsTV showsgives Lucasfilm another source of success, truly proving how big the franchise still is to this day. That said,Star Warsis no stranger to the odd failure, with some projects over the years not working out as well as Lucasfilm might have hoped. WhetherupcomingStar Warsmoviesreplicate former success or repeat symptoms of these failures remains to be seen, but what is certain is that Lucasfilm continues to learn the wrong lessons from its less successful ventures.
All 14 Unmade & Canceled Star Wars Movies & TV Shows (& Why They Didn’t Happen)
Throughout the history of Star Wars, there have been various movies that were planned and ultimately never saw the light. Here’s every one of them.
Star Wars Has Completely Misunderstood Why Solo Failed
Lucasfilm Learned The Wrong Lessons From Solo: A Star Wars Story
Solo: A Star Wars Storyis the franchise’s biggest bomb, earning only $393 million against a budget reported to be as big as $330 million. As such,Solois the only live-actionStar Warsmovie in history to be deemed an outright box office failure. The other movies of the franchise were commercial successes, more than earning back their production budgets and allowingStar Warsto be one of the most profitable franchises in movie history. Unfortunately,Solocould not continue this track record and marked the first flop for Lucasfilm whereStar Warsis concerned.
$11,000,000
$460,998,007
$775,398,007
$23,000,000
$291,738,960
$549,001,086
Return of the Jedi
$32,500,000
$316,465,003
$482,365,284
$115,000,000
$487,574,671
$1,040,074,671
$310,676,740
$656,695,615
$380,270,577
$848,998,877
$533,200,000
$936,662,225
$2,058,880,845
$280,200,000
$533,539,991
$1,055,083,596
$262,000,000
$620,181,382
$1,325,604,756
$330,400,000
$213,767,512
$393,151,347
$275,000,000
$515,202,542
$1,070,655,325
While this alone is a frustrating fact, what makesSolo’s failure even more disappointing is the fact that Lucasfilm learned the wrong lessons from the scenario.According to those at Lucasfilm, it was the recasting of iconicStar Warscharacters that resulted inSolo’s poor box officeperformance. This much was confirmed by comments onStar Wars’Han Solo recastfrom Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, with the franchise since having disregarded the actors hired to play younger versions of Han Solo and Lando Calrissian.
However, it was not the young actors who causedSolo’s poor performance. In fact, many would agree that Alden Ehrenreich and Donald Glover were shining lights ofSoloas Han and Lando respectively. Instead, it was the lack of strong marketing that sawSolofail.Solowas released amid strong competition in May 2018, as the likes ofAvengers: Infinity WarandDeadpool 2dominated the box office. To offset this strong competition, Lucasfilm should have poured more into marketing the movie, yet failed to do so.
Many issues causedSoloto fail at the box office, yet the incredibly good actors hired were not one of them…
This links to another reasonSoloflopped: its inflated budget. The high production budget of the film is likely a huge factor in why Lucasfilm did not spend more to market the anthology movie. The failure to hash out a concise plan withSolo’s original directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, saw Ron Howard hired later into production, resulting in 70% of the movie being reshot and massively upping its budget. As evident, many issues causedSoloto fail at the box office, yet the incredibly good actors hired were not one of them, contrary to Lucasfilm’s belief.
Another Great Star Wars Actor & Their Character Has Been Mistreated
Boba Fett
A perfect clone of bounty hunter Jango Fett, Boba Fett inherited his father’s profession and operated as a bounty hunter through the Clone Wars and the Dark Times of the Empire’s reign. Believed killed on Tatooine, he survived and sought redemption of sorts after he was helped by native Tusken Raiders. In The Mandalorian era, Boba Fett now operates as a crime lord - having taken over Jabba the Hutt’s old empire.
Recently, Lucasfilm has proved yet again that the studio cannot learn the correct mistakes fromStar Warsfailures. Putting movies aside, theworst-rankedStar WarsTV showstend to include 2021’sThe Book of Boba Fett. Despite the overwhelming excitement at Temuera Morrison’s return as Boba Fett inThe Mandalorianseason 2 and his subsequent spin-off, the latter was poorly received by fans and critics alike, making it one of the fewStar WarsTV shows to hold this unfortunate reputation.
This has led to the question of whetherBoba Fett will have anotherStar Warsreturnin the near future, something star Temuera Morrison has shed some light on recently. During FAN EXPO Chicago, Morrison revealed that he was initially supposed to be part ofThe Mandalorianseason 4 as Boba Fett, but that the show’s pivot towards the theatricalThe Mandalorian & Groguproject means he is waiting on a call from the studio to explain his character’s future. This is beyond frustrating, as Lucasfilm’s decision to withdraw Boba Fett from projects is undoubtedly a reaction toThe Book of Boba Fett’s poor reception.
As was the case withSoloLucasfilm is taking the wrong lesson from this reaction. Eventhose disappointed withThe Book of Boba Fettwould agree that Morrison, and the titular character, was not a problem with the series. Morrison is one of the most dedicated actors in the franchise and has an obvious love forStar Wars, and Boba Fett is a character many wish to see more of, albeit in more compelling stories thanThe Book of Boba Fett.
Temuera Morrison has stated since 2021 that he will continuously push to have Boba be involved in more projects, highlighting Lucasfilm’s misreading of the show’s failures even more.
The story and characterization of this show are what fans did not respond to, not Boba himself. Unfortunately, rather than fixing the issues with writing and character arcs in future seasons ofThe Book of Boba Fettor including him in celebrated supporting roles as was the case inThe Mandalorianseason 2, Boba and Morrison have been benched. This is a sad reality for fans of Boba and for Morrison himself, who has endlessly reiterated his desire to step back into the armor as part ofStar Wars’New Republic timeline once more.
Star Wars: New Republic Timeline Explained
The New Republic Era is a brief period of galactic history, but it’s vitally important to Star Wars. Here are all the key galactic events!
Star Wars' Mistakes Are Costing Lucasfilm… Badly
Lucasfilm Is Missing Out On Some Of Star Wars' Best Aspects
With these mistakes being highlighted, it becomes clear that they are costing Lucasfilm where stories and characters are concerned. RegardingSolo, many have come to love the movie specifically for its younger cast members. The “#MakeSolo2Happen” campaign spawned shortly after the film’s release due to the love Ehrenreich received as Han Solo, as well as Glover in the role of Lando. Lucasfilm seemed to listen to this to an extent by announcing the development of aLandoseries, now thought to be a film, with Glover onboard.
However, that film has been left in limbo since, with its own share of production issues. Where Ehrenreich is concerned, there is nothing to suggest his return in any upcoming movies or shows. Then there is Boba Fett, one of the most iconic characters inStar Warshistory who is simply sitting on a shelf with no further development planned. These decisions are ultimately costing Lucasfilm great stories and characters, and most of the fanbase is aware of this fact. Unfortunately, though,Star Warsis still suffering from its parent company learning the wrong mistakes from past failures.
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Cast
Solo: A Star Wars Story explores the early adventures of Han Solo, showcasing his beginnings and key encounters with significant characters in the Star Wars universe. Set in a backdrop of galactic turmoil, the film delves into the origins of his famed relationships and his rise as a rebellious smuggler.
