Disney’s latest Star Wars film disappoints at box office over opening weekend
The latest instalment in the Star Wars film saga was a relative disappointment for opening weekend ticket sales compared to other films in the franchise.
The Rise of Skywalker took $374m (£288m) in global sales over its first weekend.
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US sales down nearly 30 per cent on the first movie in the series, The Force Awakens.
Nevertheless, the latest film is still one of the best December openings in North America.
It is expected to cap a strong year for Disney, which has enjoyed a string of popular films grossing more than $1bn.
The company has enjoyed box office success with Frozen 2, Lion King and Aladdin.
Earlier this year, Avengers: Endgame became the highest grossing film ever, breaking the $1bn sales barrier within five days of hitting the silver screen.
The Rise of Skywalker is the final chapter in the Star Wars saga, which started in 1977. The film stars Brits Daisy Ridley and John Boyega.
But it has drawn mixed reviews from critics, some of whom said it suffered from an unimaginative plot.
The film’s largest market, North America, earned it $176m.
Jeff Bock, a senior box office analyst at Exhibitor Relations, said the takings were “a great number for December”.
But the US sales still showed a 20 per cent decline on the previous instalment.
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“That’s a cause for concern no matter how big your franchise is,” he said.
The two previous films in the saga – The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi – have taken home $517m and $450m respectively in their first weekends.