Okay, the tickets aren't selling. The critic reviews are lukewarm at best. But before you start thinking that the Star Wars franchise is as dead as Luke's Tauntaun (and Luke himself) there's an important fact you need to keep in mind.
Solo has been number one in the box office the last 2 weeks straight.
Yeah. Solo beat out Deadpool 2 it's opening weekend and that movie was only out for 9 days longer. (May 18th vs. May 27th) Regardless of how much money isn't being made Solo is in fact a hit with fans. Sure it's not Force Awakens money but so what? When you consider this is an off trilogy movie and just back story at that, Solo is actually doing quite well. While it won't break even in the box office we can thank the movie's troubled development for that. As a money maker Solo was doomed before it ever made the jump to hyperspace and onto the big screen. That doesn't say anything about the franchise if you really stop and think about it. What it does speak to, is how badly the production studios are handling the Star Wars brand.
Solo is only the second Star Wars story movie to be made and like it's predecessor, Rouge One it had a pretty rocky development. Both movies suffered extensive re-shoots and went over budget. There was quite a lot of bickering behind the scenes which caused those re-shoots to happen as directors clashed with the keepers of lore about how to create the Star wars vision. Again. Even though the big bosses won out in the end they might become the ultimate losers. The fighting behind the scenes has taken so much of a toll that creative directors are leaving left and right. Not only did Ron Howard have to take over and almost completely re-shoot an already developed film but Rian Johnson was pulled off of Episode XI and J.J. Abrams was re-installed to head the project. None of that is good news.
But despite it's headaches and shortcomings Solo has been a hit with fans and it's safe to say that had the re-shoots not happened it would have turned a profit. Not much of one, but a profit nonetheless. Similarly, while Rouge One struggled to make the big ticket numbers expected of a Star Wars film it did make money and as long as these movies can perform that's a big plus for everyone.
So while Solo may be a big loser for Disney, it's a big winner for fans and in the end that's what matters most.