It's finally here. The Rise Of Skywalker, the last entry in the Skywalker saga, has arrived. It was hotly anticipated by Star Wars fans everywhere as a celebration of one of cinema's greatest franchises and sagas. The film has opened to mixed critical reception but a fairly positive audience reaction - which the fandom sorely needed.
One thing that can always be expected from a Star Wars film even if the quality is not to everyone's standards, is a big box office. The kick-off of a film's time in theatres is perhaps its most important time, and for Star Wars it is no different, so here are all Star Wars movies ranked by their opening weekend domestic gross according to Box Office Mojo.
STAR WARS (EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE) (1977) - $1,554,475
The gorgeous film that kicked off the whole saga, Star Wars came to theatres on May 25, 1977 and not only made history but changed pop culture forever. It is one of the most beloved films in the franchise by all fans with its fantastic characters, beautiful worlds and enthralling story.
The film is credited as one of the first blockbusters in cinema, and in its opening weekend, the film grossed $1,554,475 - this was on an initial limited release - on its way to a $460,998,507 domestic total helping to reach $775,512,064 worldwide gross.
STAR WARS EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980) - $4,910,483
Next up, the installment considered by many as the best-made film in the franchise. Empire Strikes Back was another critical and financial success for George Lucas and co. The story of Empire Strikes Back is outstanding, and when you add in more of cinema's most iconic characters as well as perhaps its most iconic twist, you have movie magic.
The film again crushed at the box office upon its release on May 21, 1980, opening to a $4,910,483 domestic weekend - during another limited release before expanding - before earning a domestic total of $290,271,960 on route to its $547,879,454 worldwide gross.
STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS (2008) - $14,611,273
This is a film which, in all honesty, is of poor quality but spawned one of the best things to happen in Star Wars, The Clone Wars animated series. In hindsight, Ahsoka's annoying nature in this film is minuscule compared to how fantastic she is beyond this point.
The film's purpose was to draw in families and give an introduction to the animated series, when it was released on August 14, 2008. It succeeded by drawing $14,611,273 on its opening weekend domestically, on its way to a $35,161,554 domestic total and $68,282,844 worldwide gross.
STAR WARS EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI (1980) - $23,019,618
Rounding out the iconic and fantastic original trilogy, Return Of The Jedi gave the perfect end to a perfect trifecta. While the second Death Star was a bit meh, the film's ending is satisfying and beautiful, as are the characters.
The film arrived on May 25, 1983, opening domestically to $23,019,618 in its opening weekend, the highest of the original three by a long way. The film went on to gross $309,306,177 domestically leading to its worldwide gross of $475,347,111 - the lowest of the original trilogy but with the highest opening weekend.
STAR WARS EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE (1999) - $64,820,970
The first film of the prequel trilogy, The Phantom Menace, smashed box office records at the time and, despite its mixed reaction even to this day, introduced a whole new generation of people into the saga. Along with that, it still holds one of the best lightsaber battles in history as well as the first appearance of Darth Maul.
The film debuted on May 19, 1999 with a domestic opening of a whopping $64,820,970, one of the highest in history at the time. It went on to gross a domestic total of $474,544,677 as a part of a worldwide gross of $1,027,082,707, the first and only of the non-Disney era Star Wars films to gross over $1 billion.
STAR WARS EPISODE II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES (2002) - $80,027,814
Another prequel film whose financial success surpassed its critical success, Attack Of The Clones is good in that it kicks off the Clone Wars era and despite its cringe-worthy dialogue, it will still beloved by kids and a nostalgic generation.
Opening on May 16, 2002, the film grossed $80,027,814 domestically in its opening weekend, taking that domestic gross to $310,676,740 which helped the film to a $649,436,358 worldwide total.
SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY (2018) - $84,420,489
While Solo: A Star Wars Story may be in the top half of this list, it does not stop the entertaining, fun flick from being the biggest financial disappointment on it, even despite its good performances, characters, and decent action.
Released on May 25, 2018 - the first Disney Star Wars film not released in December - the film had an opening weekend of $84,420,489, before going on to gross $213,767,512 domestically and a worldwide total of $392,924,807.
STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH (2005) - $108,435,841
Widely considered the best film of the prequel trilogy, this made the original six of the Star Wars saga 6-6 in terms of being a financial success. Featuring amazing performances from Ewan McGregor and Ian McDiarmid, Revenge Of The Sith adds to the lore brilliantly and has an outstanding lightsaber battle, on top of great insight into the tragedy of Darth Plag... Vader, sorry.
The film opened on May 18, 2005 with a $108,435,841 weekend, leading to a $380,270,577 domestic gross helping towards its $850,035,635 worldwide gross.
ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY (2016) - $155,081,681
A great war film set in the Star Wars universe, Rogue One may suffer from lack of character development, but is witty humor, fan service, and action, as well as a phenomenal third act lead to a stellar film.
The film did well both critically and financially. It opened on December 14, 2016 with a $155,081,61 weekend before gaining $532,177,324 as a domestic gross and $1,056,057,273 as a worldwide total.
STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER (2019) - $175,500,000
The Rise Of Skywalker has not long finished its opening weekend and while critics may not be enjoying it like fans, there are so many positives to take out of the fun, fast-paced, fan service full adventure and it looks set to make another boatload of money for Disney.
The film opened on December 19 to a $175,500,000 weekend and looks set to roll in a lot more domestically as the weeks go on and the holiday season finishes. There is a very high chance the film makes the sequel trilogy three-for-three in grossing over $1 billion.
STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (2017) - $220,009,584
The most divisive film in the Star Wars franchise, The Last Jedi did to the fandom what it did to the box office, crushed it. No matter the opinions on the direction Rian Johnson took, the film is beautiful with outstanding performances and adds a lot to the lore with a lot to love.
It opened on December 14, 2017 with a $220,009,584 weekend, going on to gross $620,181,382 domestically and a worldwide total of $1,332,539,889. The box office shows a lot more people may have liked this film more than Twitter lets on.
STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS (2015) - $247,966,675
The film that introduced a whole new generation to Star Wars while trying to capture the love and attention of a generation past, The Force Awakens brought Star Wars back to cinema in a big way following Disney's acquisition of the franchise. The film is packed with great characters, fantastic nostalgia, and great action, and while it does retread the story of A New Hope, it does so in its own way and has so much to love.
Not only does the movie top this list for the highest domestic opening weekend for a Star Wars film, but it also has the highest domestic weekend of all time. Opening on December 17, 2015 the film had a giant $247,966,675 opening weekend on its way to a $936,662,225 domestic total and an eye-watering $2,068,223,624 worldwide total.