Disney has already had an explosive 2018. The studio has already made over one billion dollars for the year thanks to movies like Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War, and that momentum isn't slowing down anytime soon. Disney has another major release coming later this month in the form of Solo: A Star Wars Story. While it may have seemed like enthusiasm wasn't quite as high for this spin-off as previous films in the mega-sized franchise, you just can't keep a Star Wars film down. Solo's pre-ticket sales are already double that of Black Panther.
Solo: A Star Wars Story tickets went up for pre-order yesterday in honor of May the Fourth, the unofficial Star Wars holiday due to the phonetic similarities with "May the Force be with you." It was a clever strategy to capitalize on Star Wars hype, and it's already paid off big time. After just 24 hours, Solo's pre-ticket sales are double that of Black Panther, according to Fandango (via Deadline). The Marvel hit was no slouch in pre-sales, so this is a pretty good win for Solo.
Solo is projected to open the four-day Memorial Day holiday with $170 million. However, Disney likes to remain conservative when it reports these numbers (in case it ends up being a disappointment), so we can probably expect the movie to open a little bit higher than that number. If this projection holds true, that would make Solo the second biggest Memorial Day weekend launch ever. It would also open behind The Force Awakens ($247 million) and The Last Jedi ($220 million) but above fellow Star Wars spin-off Rogue One ($155 million).
This pre-sale news may come as somewhat surprising to some (including this writer), but likely a relief to Disney. Solo had some negative attention after the original directors were fired and replaced with Ron Howard. That has pretty much dominated the topic of conversation concerning this movie, but it looks like that either general audiences aren't aware/don't care about it; they're just excited to see a new Star Wars movie. A Fandango survey reports that 85% of those who answered claim Han Solo is their favorite Star Wars character, so that could be a big contributor as well.
Solo: A Star Wars Story could be on its way to take home some big money for Disney. the spin-off prequel opens in theaters on May 25. To learn more about the movie, here's everything we know so far. It's a big summer, so keep track of all the must-see releases over the next few months. For everything else hitting theaters for the rest of the year, be sure to visit our 2018 movie guide.
