Taking advantage of the celebration of May 4, the film has raised 8.1 million dollars
This weekend, coinciding with the celebration of Star Wars Day (May 4) and the 25th anniversary of the film, ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace’ has been re-released on a limited basis, obtaining a surprising second place at the North American box office with 8.1 million dollars, and only behind ‘The Specialist’ which, despite its 28 million, is behind forecasts.
The one that at some point was the ugly duckling of the saga has now been welcomed with open arms. Nostalgia for the nineties is real, as is the generational transfer that the galactic saga is recently facing. Many children who grew up with these characters are now adults and are as fond of them as young people were of Luke, Leia and company in their day.
Although it has not caught on as much in Spain, the initiative has been an international success. The coincidence with May 4 (‘May the fourth’), an important and almost sacred date in the US, has surely helped give the push. Beyond that, it is another demonstration that for a few years now viewers don’t mind going to the movies to get nostalgic.
Classics on the big screen
The adventures of Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan and little Anakin join the return of other popular classics. This year we have also had ‘Alien’ and Sam Raimi’s ‘Spider-Man’ trilogy in theaters. By June, the ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy will return internationally, and it will do so along with a brand new remastering work.
Although some revivals have been more discreet, such as the return of ‘The Exorcist’ for its 50th anniversary at the end of last year or the lukewarm reception of ‘Luca’ or ‘Red’ this month, many others are proving to be a good initiative for the rooms. ‘Alien’ reached the top 10 on its first day on April 26, ranking above ‘Dune: Part II’ and another old acquaintance: ‘The Mummy’ by Brendan Fraser.
At the end of 2022, the untouchable ‘Avatar’ earned $76 million worldwide in its re-release, amassing 10 million in its first weekend and remaining in third place below ‘Don’t worry, my dear’ and ‘The Woman King’. The return of movies to theaters has always existed, but in recent years a trend has been established that seems to be growing specifically since covid.
The shortage of new releases During the pandemic, it allowed old films to have a second life on the big screen, while new releases fell far short of forecasts. It is also not a secret that the recent strikes in Hollywood, both scriptwriters and actors, have left many projects on hold. These gaps in the calendar forced distributors to think about alternatives.
The trend that It started out of necessity and has caught on. Some distributors are beginning to specialize in these nostalgic releases. Since 2022, the British from Park Circus have been in charge of bringing films such as ‘Home Alone’, ‘Jurassic Park’ or ‘Hocus Pocus’ to theaters, obtaining figures that some domestic releases struggle to reach.
Despite the box office success of ‘The Phantom Menace’, its 8.1 million, as well as the 28 million of ‘The Specialist’, are far from what was collected on these same dates in previous years. ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ obtained 118 million in 2023 in this same weekend, which is in turn a decrease compared to the 187 million that Doctor Strange made in 2022. Attendance in theaters continues to be a complicated issue and the numbers speak, so it is increasingly necessary to look for ways to reinvent oneself.
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