Let's Talk About 'Star Wars' -- That Franchising Juggernaut'May the fourth' be with you. This 'Star Wars' Day, celebrate the nostalgia brand that has spanned 39 years and generated some serious bank in the meantime.
ByCarolyn Sun•
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
What dourns,fruitanddroneshave in common?
All of these are products fall under the massiveStar Warslicensing umbrella that raked in over$3 billion in 2015and is estimated to bring in$5 billion this year. The film franchise, which Disney purchased fromStar Warscreator George Lucas in 2012 for the bargain price (relatively speaking) of $4 billion, has the largest licensing program ever, says Karina Masolova, editor ofThe Licensing Letter.
"Disney is exporting a huge world," Masolova says. "Name a product, and they probably have it."
It's no shocker thatStar Warsalone is doing billions in merchandise sales. George Lucas's first film kicked off in 1977, and today, total revenue fromStar Warstoy licensing isestimated at $12 billionand counting.
The excitement is not going away anytime soon. The next film,Rogue One, will debut Dec. 16, 2016. In honor ofStar WarsDay(#MayTheFourthBeWithYou), enjoy some fun facts aboutStar Warssales figures over the years.
Note: While box-office totals have been adjusted for inflation, other sales numbers from the past four decades may not be. Given the range of estimates out there, the following figures provide a sense of the franchise's scope.
Related:Batman vs. Superman: Who Makes More Money?
The first film in the franchise,A New Hope, debuted in 1977 and has generated$3 billion in salessince.
The seventh installment,The Force Awakens, was released on Dec. 18, 2016 and had the highest earning opening box office sales of all time at $248 million. It has earned $2.1 billion worldwide since.
Total box office revenue fromStar Warsfilms total$7.3 billionin inflation-adjusted dollars.
In total, theStar Warsfranchise has earned$30.2 billion worldwidein box offices sales, merchandising and licensing. (Some estimates put the figure even higher!)
The one film that did not match the merchandising sales of the others wasAttack of the Clones.Because of the massive unpopularity of the Jar Jar Binks character, sales suffered.
Force Fridayis an 18-hour global sales marathon -- much like Black Friday -- pegged to the launch of newStar Warstoys. Last year, Force Friday produced holiday-level sales that beat Amazon's Prime Day and rivaled Black Friday (deals aside),according to Adobe Digital Index.
The Force Awakenstrailer dropped on Oct. 19 and caused a 2000% spike inStar Wars-related mentions over social media, reportsAdobe Digital Index.
Darth Vader topped all with the most social mentions at 590,000, while the new droid BB-8 came in second at 513,000 between the months ofSept. and Nov. 2015.
