Regardless of reception from fans and critics, Star Wars: The Last Jedi is on its way to becoming a box office hit.
As of Friday, The Last Jedi has earned a whopping $104.8 million domestically, making it the second biggest opening day of all time. It trails only Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which earned $119.1 million the same day of its opening weekend in December 2015. Industry estimates now put The Last Jedi's three-day earnings between $216 million and $220 million, which would also be slightly behind The Force Awakens ($247.966 million).
Disney's Beauty and the Beast currently holds the title for the biggest domestic opening of 2017, having earned $174.8 million in its opening weekend.
A strong opening weekend for Star Wars: The Last Jedi shouldn't surprise anyone given the popularity of the franchise, but how it continues to perform in the weeks ahead is where there could be some uncertainty. Although the Rian Johnson-directed Episode VIII has been a critical darling, officially certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a 93% approval among critics, its audience score tells a much different story. The Last Jedi's audience rating is currently at an abysmal 57%, which is considerably lower than Justice League's 80% audience rating. Given the drop off that film saw in box office numbers, can we expect the same with The Last Jedi?