Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

[Onyx]

They are making money. It's no failure. perhaps they won't make as much as the last one, but I will not weep over their making a few million less.

If you spent between $250 and $300 million, but have only made $84 million so far, are they making money?

 

[Cathbad]

If you spent between $250 and $300 million, but have only made $84 million so far, are they making money?

Yes. The amount they made in the first 3 days was $102m. That was only $13m less than predicted. The film will make $1B in theaters alone - not including DVD, Netflix, HBO, etc.

Sorry... I just won't feel sorry for millionaires making only $90m profit instead of $100m.

 

[Onyx]

Yes. The amount they made in the first 3 days was $102m. That was only $13m less than predicted. The film will make $1B in theaters alone - not including DVD, Netflix, HBO, etc.

Sorry... I just won't feel sorry for millionaires making only $90m profit instead of $100m.

It really isn't a question of paying millionaires, but whether Disney continues to see Star Wars films as worth making.

 

[Cathbad]

It really isn't a question of paying millionaires, but whether Disney continues to see Star Wars films as worth making.

If they don't think $1B an episode is worth it, they should get out of the movie-making racket.

 

[Onyx]

If they don't think $1B an episode is worth it, they should get out of the movie-making racket.

There seems to be some debate as to whether Solo is going to join the 34 films that have ever grossed over a billion. Regardless, either the film is profitable to the people that produced it or it isn't. And if it isn't, that's not a good thing for folks that greenlight expensive Star Wars films.

 

[Cathbad]

Solo cost $250m to make. A search shows that it won't quite make $200m by the end of it's 2nd week.

So yeah; it's gonna make money - just not as much as previous ones. Sorry - you're just not gonna get me to feel sorry for millionaires not making enough.

 

[Culhwch]

I saw it today, and I really liked it. I'd say it's on a par for me with Rogue One, and streets better than The Last Jedi and The Force Awakens. I'd much rather that they continue with the standalone stories (although it does seem like they have more Solo films planned) than the main Skywalker saga.

No one will try to make you feel sorry for millionaires, Cathbad, but there's no denying this has been somewhat of a bomb and definitely a disappointment for Disney/Lucasfilm. They'll make their money back, doubtless, but they'd have been aiming for a lot better than that, and beyond that the lukewarm fan reaction has to be even more worrying than the financial side of things moving forward.

To be honest, I think part of the problem is that this movie has come far too close on the heels of TLJ. If they'd kept to the yearly release schedule I feel it'd have done much better, but there really hasn't been time to build up any kind of anticipation or longing for a new Star Wars film. Plus the timing isn't great, having followed two actual successes in Infinity War and Deadpool 2, which doesn't help. Actually I think they'd have been better served aiming this for next May/June, and then Episode IX for December 2021. Let them sit for awhile, and let the anticipation for each following installment really build. That's not going to happen though, in this world where we get three or four quite successful Marvel movies each year. That's the model everyone is aiming for nowadays.

Just also, if fans who didn't like TLJ are boycotting this, then they are shooting themselves in the foot, because surely if they didn't like what TLJ ultimately was, Solo is surely more their speed. To me, this really felt like an EU kind of movie. I said the same about Rogue One. Maybe it's just me preferring the immediate OT era, and not being too fussed with the universe as set up in the sequels. I like having the real Empire kicking about, though. There's something about the First Order that just can't quite match the Imperial war machine.

 

[Onyx]

Solo cost $250m to make. A search shows that it won't quite make $200m by the end of it's 2nd week.

So yeah; it's gonna make money - just not as much as previous ones. Sorry - you're just not gonna get me to feel sorry for millionaires not making enough.

Despite the frustration of saying this multiple times and you responding as if I said something completely different, I'll try again:

If Disney feels that they aren't making enough money making Star Wars movies, they won't keep making Star Wars movies.

Do you see how that sentence has nothing to do with your feelings about millionaires? Disney isn't a charity whose job it is to provide Star Wars films to the public.

 

[Culhwch]

Interestingly I just heard that Solo was the most expensive Star Wars film so far. Also I'd that's just the cost of production, you can generally at least double that figure to include marketing, although I don't feel like they pushed this as hard as some of the other new films. So a performance closer to half a billion than a billion really is a swing and a miss.

 

[Onyx]

Interestingly I just heard that Solo was the most expensive Star Wars film so far. Also you can at least double that cost to include marketing, although I don't feel like they pushed this as hard as some of the other new films. So a performance closer to half a billion than a billion really is a swing and a miss.

They re-shot a large amount of the film after Ron Howard took over. I don't know if the budget numbers in the press reflect the original budget or the final expense.

I'm always just shocked by how much CGI costs compared to the way the original films were made. You would think it would be a bargain to shoot in front of a greenscreen and do the rest with computers.

 

[WaylanderToo]

Interestingly I just heard that Solo was the most expensive Star Wars film so far. Also I'd that's just the cost of production, you can generally at least double that figure to include marketing, although I don't feel like they pushed this as hard as some of the other new films. So a performance closer to half a billion than a billion really is a swing and a miss.

It's not even as easy as that. Apparently, these days, a film needs at least double its budget back to even start thinking about making money. Think about that $500,000,000 could see a film not make a profit!

Ah yes, you go, but then there's the overseas take and leading on from that DVD etc - that isn't straight profit either as there are partnerships involved (each of whom has to get their cut) and, yet more, marketing.

IIRC where a film (as with gigs) makes a lot of money is on the merch side of things. I don't recall seeing any for Solo (though I don't have kids so that may not be surprising).

 

[Culhwch]

They re-shot a large amount of the film after Ron Howard took over. I don't know if the budget numbers in the press reflect the original budget or the final expense.

I'm always just shocked by how much CGI costs compared to the way the original films were made. You would think it would be a bargain to shoot in front of a greenscreen and do the rest with computers.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure the reshoots are what bumped this one up so much. It's interesting because on the surface a lot of this film appears to be practical effects, which I prefer. Obviously there was still quite a lot of CGI, but it felt like less than TLJ for instance.

 

[Parson]

So yeah; it's gonna make money - just not as much as previous ones. Sorry - you're just not gonna get me to feel sorry for millionaires not making enough.

Actually a better barometer of how well a movie does is the kind of legs it has. And if this group of usually pretty critical people find much to like about the movie it might just surprise everyone in the end.

 

[Cathbad]

Despite the frustration of saying this multiple times and you responding as if I said something completely different, I'll try again:

If Disney feels that they aren't making enough money making Star Wars movies, they won't keep making Star Wars movies.

Do you see how that sentence has nothing to do with your feelings about millionaires? Disney isn't a charity whose job it is to provide Star Wars films to the public.

I've no idea how you got that from what I said??

 

[Onyx]

Actually a better barometer of how well a movie does is the kind of legs it has. And if this group of usually pretty critical people find much to like about the movie it might just surprise everyone in the end.

Don't we all like the financial failure Bladerunner? Other flops include Star Trek, Firefly and Gattaca.

I've no idea how you got that from what I said??

You said:

Sorry - you're just not gonna get me to feel sorry for millionaires not making enough,

Which is about your feelings about millionaires, and has nothing to do with my point which is that the production company needs to feel the film was a reasonably profitable undertaking, regardless of your feelings, if they are going to be motivated to keep making them.

 

[Cathbad]

We are not in disagreement, friend.

 

[BAYLOR]

It’s only a movie

 

[Parson]

Saw it today, and I was not all that impressed. A lot of good action but it felt like the middle act in a three act play. There was no distinct beginning and the ending felt the beginning of something which might be tangible. On the plus side there was a lot of good action scenes, even if the "train" in an incredibly mountain filled environment seemed to be absolutely crazy in a universe of speeders and space craft which can vertically take off and land in a gravity well. I really missed Jedi warriors and the use of the force, which for me has always been one of the best parts of the Star Wars stories. I've not liked any of them as well as the first one (okay fourth now) because of it's being downplayed from that point on.


Surprises:

Spoiler

I thought the very best part of the movie was the appearance of Jyn and her freedom fighters. I didn't see that coming at all. The other shock was the stith Lord's appearance at the end of the movie.

 

[Dave]

I saw it today. I liked it. Not as much as Rogue One, but more that The Last Jedi. I'm not bothered about how much it made, except that I would like to see the sequel, that room was so obviously left for, and unfortunately, whether that is made is a question of profit made from this.

...Solo was the most expensive Star Wars film so far...

They re-shot a large amount of the film after Ron Howard took over.

I would assume that was the reason. I also agree with those saying that to have squeezed maximum profit from this franchise, they should have probably spaced out the release dates more, and kept the fans hungry for more. I'm happy they just released them as they were finished instead.

It didn't appear to have suffered from all the creative differences and changed directors. That seems to only have improved the final product. There are a lot of long standing questions in this film answered. You just need to search online for "things you missed from solo". For instance, why the Kessel Run record is measured in distance rather than time.

It is unclear to me when this is set exactly. The age of the main characters would suggest it was very close to Rogue One/A New Hope, but then the Sith Lord that appeared at the end would surely suggest a much earlier date? I've found online that the Sith Lord was exactly who he looked to be, but I'm still left confused. Any answers should probably be in spoiler tags.

 

[night_wrtr]

It is unclear to me when this is set exactly. The age of the main characters would suggest it was very close to Rogue One/A New Hope, but then the Sith Lord that appeared at the end would surely suggest a much earlier date? I've found online that the Sith Lord was exactly who he looked to be, but I'm still left confused. Any answers should probably be in spoiler tags.

Spoiler

The bulk of the story is 10 years before ANH. Chewie is says he is 190 and is said to be 200 during that one.

Yeah, Maul's story continues in the TV The Clone Wars after his unfortunate ending from The Phantom Menace. I can tell you how this happened if you want, or if you want to watch the story - I don't remember which season his episodes are in, but I think it is the end of season four-season five. He also makes another appearance in the latest TV show Rebels and is seen throughout the series, which takes us right on the eve of Rogue One.