Latest installment of the Star Wars franchise pulled in its second week, with box office receipts down 92%.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi has been pulled from cinemas in parts of China in its second week after being received unfavourably by audiences.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Jimmy Wu, chairman of nationwide Chinese cinema chain Lumiere Pavilions, commented: “The Last Jedi has already been completely pulled from cinemas here. It’s performed much worse than we could have expected.”
The film earned $28.7m its first week, compared to the $220m it made in the US during just its opening weekend. Chinese ticket sales slumped to $2.4m in its second week.
While the saga of Luke Skywalker and the rest of the rebellion has captivated audiences across the globe since 1978, China has never been gripped by the same hysteria. The Force Awakens earned $124m during its run in the country (compared to $596m in the US), but was only the 13th most popular film of the year in China. Last year’s Rogue One took in $69.5m, compared to the $532m it made in the US.
Nevertheless, the film topped $1b in ticket sales worldwide in just three weeks, and it’s currently the eighth highest-grossing domestic film of all time.
