‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ Rockets to Dominant Social Media Buzz

Disney-Luscasfilm’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” dominated social media buzz last week in the wake of the Dec. 9 world premiere and announcing its dedication to the late Carrie Fisher, according to media-measurement firm comScore and its PreAct service.

“The Last Jedi,” which opens Dec. 15, generated 368,000 new conversations last week to bring its total to 4.75 million. Tracking has shown the tentpole’s opening weekend could be in the $200 million range at the domestic box office — which would be the fourth-largest of all time after “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “Jurassic World” and “The Avengers.”

Directed by Rian Johnson, the movie picks up where 2015’s “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” left off. It stars returning cast members Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, and Andy Serkis. The new cast members include Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, and Benicio del Toro. It’s the final film role for Fisher, who died last December.

Fox’s “Maze Runner: The Death Cure” produced 112,000 new conversations last week as the studio released a new trailer on Dec. 8, two days after releasing character posters. The finale of the “Maze Runner” sci-fi trilogy will open Jan. 26. The movie’s original release date has been delayed for nearly a year in order to allow star Dylan O’Brien to recover from injuries sustained during shooting.

Disney-Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War” generated 48,000 new conversations last week after the studio released new plot details on Dec. 4. The studio dropped the official trailer on Nov. 29 during ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

The first footage showed superhero team-ups — the Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and almost every other major Marvel hero — joining forces to take on Thanos (Josh Brolin), who is trying to collect the Infinity Stones.  The movie picks up four years after the events of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.”

Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo from a screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the ensemble cast includes Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Brolin as Thanos, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Chris Evans as Captain America, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, and Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Star-Lord.

Universal’s “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” saw 46,000 new conversations last week after the studio released a trailer on Dec. 3 during Thursday Night Football, following several teasers and plot details.“Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” is the sequel to “Jurassic World,” Colin Trevorrow’s 2015 reboot of the “Jurassic Park” franchise.

Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard reprise their roles and Jeff Goldblum returns as Ian Malcolm from the original film. J.A. Bayona is directing “Fallen Kingdom,” which also stars Justice Smith, James Cromwell, and Toby Jones. The sequel opens June 22.

Fox’s “The Greatest Showman” generated 44,000 new conversations after holding its world premiere on Dec. 2 on the “Queen Mary 2.” Hugh Jackman stars in the story of how P.T. Barnum launched the Barnum & Bailey Circus in the 19th Century.

The film, which opens Dec. 20, is directed by Michael Gracey from a script by Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon. Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, Rebecca Ferguson, Keala Settle, and Zendaya also star.

Source: http://variety.com