The Rise of Skywalker, arguably the most disappointing entry in the Star Wars franchise and certainly the most divisive, will hit streaming on Disney+ two months early.
As announced on Monday, the final chapter of the Skywalker saga will hit the streaming service on May 4 (i.e. the fan-celebrated May the 4th holiday). This means that all nine entries in the Skywalker saga will now be streamable via Disney+, which recently bagged a critical and commercial hit with the Star Wars universe-expanding series The Mandalorian.
Rise will be joined on May 4 by the launch of the eight-episode docuseries Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, as well as the series finale of Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Addressing the criticism some fans lobbed at Episode IX back in December, director/co-writer J.J. Abrams took a diplomatic approach during a conversation with Variety. Noting that crafting a saga-closer that pleased everyone was an impossible feat, Abrams expressed appreciation for detractors and supporters alike.
"I'd say that they're right," he said when asked about critics of the movie, which ultimately made off with more than $515 million at the domestic box office. "The people who love it more than anything are also right. We knew going in. ... How would one even go about [pleasing everyone]?"
And just this month, John Boyega disagreed with a Twitter follower who called the movie "embarrassing." Boyega conceded, however, that there were "some disappointments."
