Whereas we nonetheless have to attend some time for Nielsen to incorporate Skeleton Crew on their streaming charts newcomer Luminate (the corporate behind the US billboard charts) have up to date their streaming charts with information from final week solely yesterday, which implies episode 3 of Skeleton Crew is included within the dataset.
And it doesn’t look good for the newest Star Wars collection. Click on by means of for extra!
Jude Legislation learns in regards to the viewership numbers for Skeleton Crew
Similar to final week, Skeleton Crew did not even make it into the Luminate high 10 streaming charts for unique exhibits. This in week 2, with episode 3 added.
And the #10 entry solely has 288.9 million minutes streamed. Skeleton Crew couldn’t even beat that.
That is particularly unhealthy because the – till now – least watched reside motion Star Wars collection, The Acolyte, had 380.5 million minutes on the Luminate streaming charts in week 2 with a comparable general runtime and it was the #6 present general in its second week. Skeleton Crew at the least has virtually 100 million minutes lower than that. All of it went downhill from there shortly in fact for The Acolyte, however that Skeleton Crew noticed no week 2 increase like The Acolyte did is admittedly unhealthy information for the present and Lucasfilm in fact.
Earlier this week Forbes posted the price range for the present, and it’s $136 million. Which is “cheaper” than The Acolyte, however truly costlier than The Mandalorian and in addition costlier than Obi-Wan Kenobi. And whereas this time you possibly can at the least type of see the price range the query should be requested if a present with restricted attraction (did Lucasfilm actually assume a Star Wars collection with youngsters as fundamental characters could be massively profitable given the demographics of the followers watching the exhibits?) ever deserved such a excessive price range. And in return for all this funding viewership should be at an alltime low for a Star Wars reside motion collection on Disney+. There merely is not any return on funding anymore for something Lucasfilm is doing.
That is much more tragic given how the present has been usually effectively acquired by the folks watching it. Most individuals agree it’s enjoyable and entertaining and lots of think about it the perfect present proper behind Andor and The Mandalorian seasons 1 and a pair of. However alas, even phrase of mouth doesn’t appear to influence scores. In fact it’s at all times potential that phrase of mouth might lastly catch on and that Skeleton Crew’s scores can enhance within the following weeks. We even have to attend for Nielsen and their charts in fact, however so far as The Acolyte is worried each Luminate and Nielsen have been just about in settlement and the numbers matched fairly intently.
If Nielsen confirms Luminate’s information it might be catastrophic for Lucasfilm and their completely rotten 2024 would finish on an actual downer.
Considerably associated to that is additionally the truth that the Indiana Jones online game “The Nice Circle” appears to be one more licensed flop for a sport with a Lucasfilm license. And although critiques for the sport are principally optimistic, the participant numbers on Steam are shocklingly low, given how it is a AAA sport. It’s about 11k gamers at this time, on a weekend, and it’s even the primary full weekend after normal launch (the sport had early entry).
Lucasfilm is already a one trick pony. After trashing Willow and turning an Indiana Jones film into one of many greatest field workplace flops of all time they solely have Star Wars. And that appears to be on a unstoppable downward trajectory in the mean time. Merchandise not sells, to the purpose Lucasfilm’s / Disney’s greatest companion within the toy business, Hasbro, known as out Star Wars of their final earnings name and advised everybody how it’s a main contributor to the unhealthy gross sales figures for his or her companion manufacturers. The exhibits, with ballooning budgets, fail on Disney+. Andor and Visions season 3 in 2025 received’t hardly buck this development both. So every little thing appears to hinge on The Mandalorian film now. Can it save Star Wars from the abyss prefer it did again in 2019 when season 1 grew to become a shock hit with Child Yoda? Or will it dig Lucasfilm’s and Star Wars’ grave?
When even one thing that’s usually effectively acquired by virtually everybody not even makes a dent on the charts… the query is what Lucasfilm may even do anymore. At this level I really feel the one plan of action could be to take away Kathleen Kennedy on the earliest alternative and to place somebody in her place most followers like and belief.
You could possibly additionally blame the advertising and marketing for Skeleton Crew perhaps. A present about youngsters in house would at all times be a troublesome promote to the principally grownup fan group, given the historical past of kid characters in Star Wars. Banking so closely on issues just like the Goonies within the advertising and marketing can also be an odd selection, when in actuality Skeleton Crew borrows much more from classics like Treasure Island with its robust pirate theme. However that is the factor: whereas George Lucas additionally borrowed from varied exhibits or motion pictures for his Star Wars, it by no means appeared like a calculated transfer. And perhaps folks really feel Skeleton Crew is simply that: a stratagem, mere content material, making an attempt to lure folks in with nostalgia.
Regardless of the causes are, reality is Skeleton Crew appears to be a scores catastrophe for Lucasfilm and will very effectively find yourself being the least watched Marvel and Star Wars collection on Disney+ ever (ignoring Echo right here which was dumped on Disney+ unexpectedly and had really abysmal numbers), with even worse numbers than Ms. Marvel.
However what is admittedly worrying for Disney is that the second greatest streaming service within the US and worldwide, primarily based on subscriber numbers, is vastly underrepresented on the streaming charts. Luminate has no charts for licensed content material (so no Bluey, however that’s not even a Disney IP), solely unique exhibits and flicks, however Disney+ has precisely “0” entries right here, no exhibits, no motion pictures by Disney make the charts, but once more. None of Disney’s unique content material is in demand.
Whereas a struggling newcomer, Paramount+, with analysts solely earlier this 12 months recommending that Paramount ends their streaming effort, with a a lot, a lot decrease variety of subscribers has 4 entries on the charts for unique exhibits, the #1, #4, #6 and eight# entry, and the #8 entry is even simply an previous season of the #4 present, Lioness. And a drama collection with Billy Bob Thornton and Ali Larter is the #1 streaming present by Paramount. So it’s not even some flashy superhero or Scifi present. Bob Iger ought to severely rethink the final content material technique Disney is pursuing. Given the variety of subscribers the shortage of Disney+ content material on the charts is stunning.
And when even tentpole franchises like Star Wars now fail to even chart altogether – regardless of a principally optimistic reception by the folks nonetheless watching all of it – all alarm bells ought to ring. Lucasfilm can not proceed like this. And perhaps The Acolyte broken Star Wars way more than some wish to imagine. Leslye Headland tried to single handedly destroy the Jedi, to deconstruct Star Wars, to make all of it about evil. Perhaps she succeeded, solely not in methods she or Kathleen Kennedy wished.
And earlier than anybody says something: with the type of budgets Star Wars and different issues made by Disney is receiving something however a high 10 charts place is a catastrophe. You don’t spend that a lot cash on one thing just for it to be within the “additionally ran” class. This could be much less of an issue if this stuff value $40 or $50 million perhaps. However it may hardly be Lucasfilm’s nor Disney’s ambition to be something however a high participant given what number of subscribers Disney+ has. But they aren’t.
Lucasfilm can also be in dire want of a optimistic PR push. And as talked about, the one factor I can consider is a swift elimination of Kathleen Kennedy and to exchange her with somebody followers assist. She has now overseen three main flops in a row. Indiana Jones in 2023, The Acolyte and Skeleton Crew in 2024 and misplaced Disney lots of of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} prior to now two years. And even licensed video games have flopped. Each Outlaws and now Indiana Jones are industrial disappointments. Nicely, flops actually. The studio and its IPs want a turnaround. Quickly.
