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Star Wars was meant to have a grand return to the big screen in 2026 after seven years away with The Mandalorian and Grogu. Continuing Lucasfilm's hit Disney+ live-action series seemed like a no-brainer given the admiration for Din Djarin and Grogu years ago, but the movie failed to convince audiences (and critics) that this adventure was anything more than a few episodes of the series stitched together for a feature length.
Following its mixed reception, The Mandalorian and Grogu struggled to really find its footing in theaters. It had a franchise-low opening weekend at $81 million domestically. The Mandalorian and Grogu's box office then suffered a huge second weekend drop, hindering its legs and making even Lucasfilm's somewhat modest $165 million investment in the production become a huge risk.
The movie is on track to finish as the lowest-grossing live-action Star Wars movie, coming in under Solo: A Star Wars Story's $392.9 million. The Mandalorian and Grogu is still about $50 million shy of that total after nine weeks in theaters, leaving it with a worldwide gross of $344.8 million. The underwhelming response has now led to it ending an era.
The Mandalorian and Grogu is no longer one of 2026's top 10 highest-grossing movies at the box office. It spent the majority of its first eight weeks in that top 10 chart, but it has now been surpassed by Minions & Monsters (with The Odyssey hot on its heels, too). The result is not at all what Lucasfilm was hoping for, but it is not surprising given the film's reception.
The Mandalorian & Grogu Falling Out Of The Top 10 Box Office Was Inevitable
The fact of the matter is The Mandalorian and Grogu never performed strong enough to have a chance of staying in the top 10 box office chart for the entire year. A global finish lower than Solo was never going to cut it, especially when it is poised to wrap up its theatrical run with around $350 million.
You have to go back to 2003 (excluding 2020 for the pandemic) to find an example of a movie finishing in the worldwide top 10 box office chart with a lower gross than The Mandalorian and Grogu, when Bad Boys II finished 10th with $273.3 million.
A top 10 box office finish requires over $500 million on average during the 21st century. The post-2020 average is $514.2 million. The Mandalorian and Grogu will finish well short of that figure, making it inevitable that Star Wars' movie would lose this spot at some point.
There are simply too many other movies that have or still can surpass Lucasfilm's release. Some, like Toy Story 5, have been expected. Others, like Obsession, have been surprise hits and captured audiences' attention far greater than The Mandalorian and Grogu. And with The Odyssey, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and more still to come, Star Wars was never going to keep this top 10 position.
The Mandalorian & Grogu May Be Safe From Disney's Lowest Star Wars Finish
While The Mandalorian and Grogu is destined to finish with a lower total than Solo at this point, its finish in the yearly charts could fare better. The 2018 Han Solo origin story came out during one of the strongest years ever for the box office, leaving it to finish as the 24th highest-grossing film of the year.
That's a low point for Disney's Star Wars movies, which have otherwise finished #1 twice (The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi), #2 (Rogue One), and #7 (The Rise of Skywalker) for their respective years. The Mandalorian and Grogu will now join Solo as the only ones to miss out on a top 10 finish, even if its final placement winds up a bit higher.
There need to be 14 movies to make more than The Mandalorian's movie, and there are limited titles guaranteed to do so. The Odyssey, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Dune: Part Three, and Avengers: Doomsday will. Jumanji: Open World and The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping should, too. Finding another eight movies that can make over $350 million is difficult.
If that many strong performers don't come, The Mandalorian and Grogu will at least avoid setting another record-low figure for Disney's Star Wars era after its disappointing box office run.
