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OutKick Sports Culture Analysis Shows OutKick Shop Newsletters Search Log In Recommended Videos Recommended Articles Left Arrow 'Supergirl' pre-release tracking looks disastrously bad for Hollywood after lead actress' bizarre comments The NBA, NBC and fanboys continue to tout deeply misleading ratings data | Bobby Burack Jaxson Dart faces more backlash for introducing Trump than NFL players face for violent crimes Star Wars franchise in serious trouble as 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' disappoints in opening box office Jemele Hill tries using the race card to defend Abdul Carter for criticizing Jaxson Dart and Trump Stop comparing Jaxson Dart's New York Trump rally speech to Colin Kaepernick's activism The worst and most cringe-worthy moments from Stephen Colbert's now-canceled 'Late Show' Limousine Liberal Max Kellerman apologizes to James Harden for comparing him to Trump Former ESPN host Max Kellerman belittles James Harden's poor performance with comparison to Trump Dan Le Batard, who previously avoided Doug Emhoff abuse allegation, declares journalism 'dead' USA Today calls Stephen Colbert, America's least funny comedian, a 'gallant comic avenger' Critics reviews for 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' are out, and it's yet another bad sign for Disney, Star Wars Can Victor Wembanyama be the true face of the NBA as a European? | Bobby Burack Amazon announces search for next James Bond is underway, as Hollywood casting choices come under scrutiny Ronda Rousey's 17-second win over Gina Carano wasn't a letdown; it was vintage | Bobby Burack WNBA graphic omitting Caitlin Clark shows identity politics still come first | Bobby Burack Audemars Piguet x Swatch 'Royal Pop' release sparks mob scenes, pepper spray and arrests at malls Statisticians strangely don't count multiple clear-cut Caitlin Clark assists vs Mystics TV networks have more leverage over the NFL and streamers than the league realizes The best outdoor weekend in Northwest Georgia doesn’t require 'roughing it' or sleeping on the ground Right Arrow Left Arrow Purple Heart recipient speaks out after Graham Platner's controversial remarks NJ governor defends anti-ICE agitators as violence erupts against federal agents Ex-CIA officer accused of stealing 300+ gold bars from home Trump outlines conditions for Iran deal: No nuclear weapons, open Strait of Hormuz Students SHOCK principal with senior prank surprise 'Chipotle Karen' caught hurling burrito bowl at worker's face Trump announces demands for Iran nuclear deal, enters Situation Room Jimmy Kimmel GOES OFF on Spencer Pratt in late-night 'screed' US and Iranian negotiators reach tentative agreement awaiting Trump's approval Blue Origin rocket explodes during engine test at Cape Canaveral High-Tech techniques for battling GLP-1 hair loss Treasury Secretary Bessent unveils Trump Accounts Michael Allen: US needs military force leverage in Iran deal High school seniors surprise principal with epic musical prank The Farmer's Dog co-founder on fresh food for pups during National Pet Month Jill Biden dismisses concerns of Joe Biden's cognitive decline US-Iran tensions heat up over Strait of Hormuz and nuclear deal NYC mayor skips Israel Day Parade for first time in over 60 years BREAKING: Amtrak fire PARALYZES commuter service Blue Origin rocket explodes into MASSIVE fireball Right Arrow OutKick-Culture 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' is a prime example that Disney's Star Wars is on life support An independent horror film called 'Obsession' overtook the Star Wars movie for the top box office spot on Wednesday By Jon Root OutKick Published May 29, 2026 1:25pm EDT Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Comments Print Email Add Fox News on Google close Video 2026 Summer Movie Preview: May and June Fandango joins us to preview highly-anticipated movies this summer starting with Ever since Disney took over Star Wars, one of America’s most well-known and cherished franchises, it has been eroding. Is it dead? Not quite, but I’d say it’s on life support. To be charitable, I could say that it’s a shell of its former self.It used to have one of the most, if not the most dedicated fanbases in all of film and television, but then, Disney took over. The new trilogy bastardized the established canon and disrespected the original characters. Former President of Lucasfilm Kathleen Kennedy decided to go the woke route by staking the claim that "The Force is Female," putting an emphasis on female empowerment over proper storytelling and character development. Disney also unjustifiably fired Gina Carano from The Mandalorian after season 2, Solo bombed, The Acolyte was an abomination that got cancelled after only one season, and the list goes on. Sure, there have been some bright spots such as "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," "Andor," though it's been a costly show financially that is not watched nearly as much as it should because of Disney's failure to keep fans interested, and "The Mandalorian" season 1 and parts of season 2. There’s no better indication that Star Wars is cooked more than what is happening in the box office right now, though. Pedro Pascal stars as The Mandalorian holding Grogu in a scene from Lucasfilm's "The Mandalorian and Grogu." (Lucasfilm)After a seven-year absence from the box office, where fans were booing in the theater as Rey was revealed to be a Skywalker in Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars made its return on Memorial Day weekend with "Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu." The title within itself should tell you how far Disney’s Star Wars has fallen into creative bankruptcy. It’s a bloated title with the names of the main characters. Imagine Star Wars Episode VI being called "Luke Skywalker and His Father" instead of "Return of the Jedi". It’s that bad. Sigourney Weaver, Pedro Pascal, Jon Favreau, and Dave Filoni, president and chief creative officer of Lucasfilm, attend The Mandalorian and Grogu Los Angeles world premiere on May 14, 2026. (Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for Disney) Anyway, the film ended the holiday weekend at the top of the box office, but it performed worse than the massive Disney Star Wars flop, Solo, when you adjust for inflation. Solo actually defeated "The Mandalorian and Grogu" in both nominal dollars and inflation-adjusted dollars. Solo's $84.4 million three-day opening in 2018 is equivalent to roughly $109–110 million today, about 33% higher than "The Mandalorian and Grogu's" $82 million opening weekend.CLICK HERE FOR MORE OUTKICK CULTURE COVERAGE If you compare the four-day holiday openings (both were Memorial Day releases), the gap is even larger. "The Mandalorian and Grogu" earned about $102 million over the four-day holiday weekend, while inflation-adjusted estimates put Solo's 2018 Memorial Day debut at roughly $136.6 million in 2026 dollars. And even worse, an independent horror, "Obsession" just surpassed "The Mandalorian and Grogu" for the top spot at the box office on Wednesday. A film that had a budget reportedly around $750,000, directed by a YouTuber and TikToker, just took out a Star Wars film, which reportedly had a production and marketing budget of more than $300 million. If that’s not a clear indication that Star Wars is on life support, I don’t know what is. Word of mouth just trounced a cultural juggernaut brand. A scene from the 2026 film "Obsession" shows the Mandalorian holding Grogu. The film is produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. (Francois Duhamel/Focus Features)EARLY REVIEWS FOR NEW 'STAR WARS' MOVIE ARE GENERALLY HORRIFIC, BUT DOES ANYONE EVEN CARE AT THIS POINT?Where "Mandalorian and Grogu," and much of Star Wars has gone wrong, is best described in some of the responses to the movie from the media. The BBC said, "It’s felt like homework" to see Star Wars and try to somehow some way connect to stories and characters that aren’t worth loving or caring for at any significant level. Inverse said, "The Mandalorian and Grogu is Barely A Movie," which is spot on because the movie feels more like a few episodes of a weak Disney+ show that has to be stretched into a movie like butter scraped over too much bread. Star Wars can no longer print money, simply because of name recognition. The constant reliance on cheap callbacks and recycling characters through cheap imitations is leaving audiences feeling cheated and empty. For example, in this movie, Grogu is a baby version of Yoda, the Hutts are back, the Mandalorian plays a Luke Skywalker figure who falls in a pit to fight a giant monster while visiting the Hutts, there’s a battle on a snow planet calling back to "Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back," and so on. Baby Yoda was fine for a season or two of the show, but now it just feels as if Disney cannot make compelling original characters, or find a way to properly care for the ones that established this franchise in the first place. Disney can’t even compel audiences to care enough to keep a Star Wars movie at the top of the box office for a whole week. It’s damning. Grogu appears in Lucasfilm's "The Mandalorian and Grogu," a series released in 2025. (Lucasfilm)CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APPThis is what modern-day Hollywood has done to beloved intellectual properties, though. It has desecrated them with woke nonsense, weak storytelling, uncompelling characters, and a belief that sticking to the source material and respecting established lore is old-fashioned. "Star Trek," "Doctor Who," "Marvel: Phase Five" (properly known as the M-She-U), "Lord of the Rings" (Rings of Power), you name it. Hollywood has again and again lit the fire and burned many franchises to the ground to the point they are unrecognizable. The question is now, "What does Disney do next with Star Wars?" My guess is it tries a reboot of the original trilogy, and the fact that I’m even writing this makes me want to throw up. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't see where else Disney goes, especially after the Starfighter movie featuring Ryan Gosling that'll attract audiences because of the actor, not because they care about the Star Wars brand or story being told. Star Wars is a franchise that should have had a century’s-long staying power, yet its grave is already being dug, with the studio scrambling to find a way to salvage the spare parts like Jawas. Jon is a writer and content creator for OutKick Related Topics OutKick-CultureHorrorGina CaranoStar WarsOpinion Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox Arrives Weekdays Subscribe Subscribed Subscribe You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! 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