The Rise of Skywalkersimply didn’t manage to win over critics. That’s just the way it works sometimes. Star Wars, like any long-running franchise, has its critical low points. As the dust has settled, Episode IX now can lay claim to a rather unfortunate record, as it’s tied withThe Phantom Menaceas the worst-reviewed live-action Star Wars movie ever. Though, the situation appears to be a bit more complicated than it may seem on the surface.
BothThe Phantom MenaceandThe Rise of Skywalkerhave a lowly 53 percent approval rating from critics. In 1999, the world was incredibly excited about the fact that George Lucas had decided to revisit his beloved sci-fi franchise for the first time sinceReturn of the Jediwith a series of prequels. Episode I was first up and, even though it went on to become a huge financial success and birthed the entire prequel trilogy, it remains, for many, perhaps the worst live-action Star Wars movie ever made.
Heading intoThe Rise of Skywalker, it was a very different situation. Lucasfilm was coming off ofThe Last Jedi, which was a big financial success, but audiences seemed to be divided on what director Rian Johnson brought to the table. J.J. Abrams, who also directedThe Force Awakens, was brought in to guide the trilogy into port. The end result, for many critics at least, was messy and unsatisfying. Especially since this served as the conclusion of the entireSkywalker saga. It is interesting that the bookends, both Episode I and Episode IX, are now the two worst-reviewed entries in the series. That is, if we’re not countingThe Clone Warsanimated movie, which sits at a 18 percent critic rating.
However,Rotten Tomatoes also accounts for audience ratingsand this is where things get more complicated.The Phantom Menacehas a comparably poor audience rating of 59 percent. Meanwhile,Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerhas a rather solid 86 percent. With Episode I, critics and audiences, more or less, seem to be more in agreement. With Episode IX, there seems to be something of a divide. As another example,The Last Jedihas a 91 percent approval rating from critics, whereas the audience rating is at 43 percent.
The Empire Strikes Back is the highest-rated entryin the franchise, sitting comfortably at 94 percent. BothA New HopeandThe Force Awakenshave a 93 percent. Also worth pointing out in an attempt to end this on a positive note; the animated seriesRebelshas a perfect 100 percent rating. So, for those that have Disney+ and haven’t watched it yet who may be looking for something Star Wars related to watch now that the movies are taking a bit of a break, that’s something to consider. you may check out the full franchise breakdown over onRotten Tomatoes.
