George Lucas relinquished the ownership of Star Wars in 2012, handing over the reins to Disney. Since then, the franchise has really been either a hit or a miss, with some projects working and some not. But how do Disney’s Star Wars movies compare to Lucas’ trilogy in terms of profits? Let’s find out.
The Force Awakens remains the franchise’s most expensive movie of all time; however, according to an analysis of documents filed by Disney, courtesy of Forbes, it is also the one that has been the most profitable.
Here’s how much profit Disney’s Star Wars has made so far, as per the company filings:
Disney clearly didn’t get too lucky with its last film, did it? On the other hand, the standalone origin story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, went into a loss of $103.3 million.
Coming to the original trilogy – Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi – here’s what Fox’s rate of return looks like: As per Forbes, A New Hope had a 45.7x rate of return while The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi did 12.1x and 11.3x, respectively.
Was the Prequel Trilogy More Profitable Than Disney’s Star Wars Trilogy?
The prequel trilogy is certainly far more appreciated today than it was during its initial release. While The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith had their fair share of haters, it didn’t deter the films from performing at the box office.
According to Forbes’ analysis, the Disney trilogy (The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker) cost $720 million to make, collectively, as compared to the $345 million of the prequel trilogy.
The Disney trilogy earned a whopping $4.475 billion on its combined budget, while the prequel trilogy made $2.437 billion. Even though Disney brought in more money at the box office, the prequel trilogy cost much less to make, giving it a higher profit margin, making it more profitable in percentage terms.
Why George Lucas Has Completely Moved on From Star Wars
It has been thirteen years since Lucas sold the franchise to Disney. However, it is only now that he is completely letting go of the galaxy far, far away. Currently working on opening his nearly billion-dollar museum, The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, Lucas is finally ready to move past his instinct to manage Star Wars.
As part of his museum, only one out of 33 inaugural exhibits will feature the designs of Star Wars vehicles. He stated (via IGN), “It’s one gallery out of 33. And I did it grudgingly. I didn’t want people to come to the museum and say, ‘Where’s the Star Wars?’
Lucas continued,
Disney took it over and they gave it their vision. That’s what happens. Of course I’ve moved past it. I mean, I’ve got a life. I’m building a museum. A museum is harder than making movies.
Lucas has been working on the museum for the last six decades, and the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is finally all set to open in Los Angeles in 2026. Are you looking forward to it?
Meanwhile, share your thoughts on how Disney’s films have fared against Lucas’ films in the comments section below.
Stream the Star Wars films on Disney+.
