The Mandalorian & Grogu Sets Disney+ Release Date After Box Office Disappointment
Seven years after The Rise of Skywalker, an extended Star Wars movie hiatus ended this summer with the release of The Mandalorian and Grogu. Unfortunately, Star Wars’ long-awaited return to the big screen wasn’t as successful as Disney and Lucasfilm would have liked. Hamstrung by an underwhelming marketing campaign and mixed reviews, The Mandalorian and Grogu suffered a steep decline at the box office following a solid opening, eventually being outgrossed by indie horror sensations Obsession and Backrooms. It ended its run as the lowest-grossing Star Wars movie of all time with just $345 million worldwide. It clearly didn’t make the biggest impression at the multiplex, but now it’s getting a new lease on life through streaming.
Today, Lucasfilm officially announced that The Mandalorian and Grogu will start streaming on Disney+ on Wednesday, September 2nd. The film was previously made available for rent and purchase on Digital platforms on July 21st, and the Blu-ray is scheduled to hit shelves on August 25th.
Disney Doesn’t Consider The Mandalorian and Grogu a Failure Despite Low Box Office
Recently, Disney admitted that The Mandalorian and Grogu did not meet expectations at the box office, an obviously disappointing turn of events for the studio. The film was budgeted at just $165 million, the lowest for a Disney-era Star Wars movie, but it still underwhelmed. Despite that performance, Disney does not consider The Mandalorian and Grogu to be a failure. Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro was quick to point out how the film was a boon for merchandise sales, theme park attendance, and even gaming initiatives, so from that perspective, it was ultimately worth the investment for the Mouse House. It goes without saying that Disney would have loved for The Mandalorian and Grogu to be a box office hit, but this is an illustration of how there are multiple revenue streams available to blockbuster movies.
It wouldn’t be surprising if The Mandalorian and Grogu found success on streaming as well. The film should be a valuable addition to the Disney+ library; The Mandalorian, of course, was the streamer’s signature original series for several years, kicking off a new era of Star Wars storytelling. Many people associate the characters of Din Djarin and Grogu with Disney+, so there’s probably a great deal of interest in watching the film on the service. The box office numbers indicate casual moviegoers didn’t feel that The Mandalorian and Grogu was a must-see on the big screen and opted to instead wait for streaming, so now they’ll take time to watch it.
It’ll be interesting to see what becomes of The Mandalorian in the future. Lucasfilm is drastically scaling back on live-action TV output; the upcoming Ahsoka Season 2 is the only new live-action series on the docket. Disney’s pivot away from prioritizing streaming means The Mandalorian Season 4 might be unlikely, considering the amount of time and resources that would have to go into producing the episodes. However, since the movie follow-up wasn’t a box office success, it’s worth wondering if Disney would be willing to give a Mandalorian and Grogu sequel the green light. Merchandise sales and theme park attendance are great, but box office is still important. As Lucasfilm looks to move forward with a new wave of Star Wars movies, they can’t afford to many box office flops in a row.
All that said, Din Djarin and Grogu remain a beloved duo, and there’s more story there to tell. The Mandalorian and Grogu didn’t feel like a proper closing chapter for them. It was more of a “day in the life” episode showing fans what kind of adventures they got up to after The Mandalorian Season 3. Lucasfilm has yet to officially confirm when these characters will pop up again. Perhaps they’ll have some kind of role aiding the New Republic in the fight against Grand Admiral Thrawn in Ahsoka Season 2, or they’ll appear in a project that hasn’t been announced yet.
