Man, December 2017 felt like a lifetime ago, didn't it? If you were anywhere near a movie theater back then, you remember the energy. It was thick. People were wearing Jedi robes in the popcorn line. There was this massive, heavy expectation hanging in the air because The Force Awakens had left us with that cliffhanger of Rey handing Luke his lightsaber. We needed answers.
The official release date of Star Wars The Last Jedi in the United States was December 15, 2017.
That Friday changed everything for the fandom. Honestly, it's rare for a single date to become a "where were you when" moment for a movie franchise, but Rian Johnson's middle chapter of the sequel trilogy managed it. While the US got it on the 15th, the global rollout was a bit of a staggered beast. Some lucky folks in the UK, Belgium, and France actually saw it as early as December 13, 2017.
The Global Rollout: Not Just a One-Day Event
Usually, these big Disney tentpoles try to hit everywhere at once to stop spoilers from leaking on Reddit, but logistics are weird.
- December 13: The premiere wave hit places like the Netherlands, Italy, and Sweden.
- December 14: Mexico, Germany, Australia, and Brazil joined the fray.
- December 15: The "Big Day" for the US, Canada, and Japan.
- January 5, 2018: China finally got the movie, though the reception there was famously lukewarm compared to the West.
It was a 150-minute epic. At the time, it was the longest Star Wars movie ever made. People were sitting in those seats until their legs fell asleep just to see if Rey’s parents were actually "somebodies." Spoiler alert for 2017: they weren't. Well, at least not until the next movie changed its mind.
What Most People Get Wrong About the 2017 Launch
There’s this narrative that the movie was a flop because a vocal group of fans hated the Canto Bight sequence or how Luke was handled.
That’s just not true.
Commercially, the release date of Star Wars The Last Jedi kicked off one of the most successful theatrical runs in history. It opened to $220 million in its first weekend in the US alone. That’s the second-biggest opening of all time at that point, trailing only its predecessor. By the time it left theaters in April 2018, it had pocketed $1.33 billion.
The "failure" narrative usually comes from the Rotten Tomatoes "Audience Score" vs. "Critic Score" gap. Critics loved it (91%). Audiences? The score plummeted to the 40s and 50s pretty quickly. It was a total culture war in digital form.
Bringing the Force Home: Digital and Blu-ray Dates
If you didn't want to deal with the crowds in December, you had to wait a few months to watch Luke toss that lightsaber over his shoulder in the comfort of your living room.
Disney announced the home media dates in February 2018. The Digital HD and 4K release landed on March 13, 2018. This was a big deal because it was Disney’s first title to support both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos on a 4K disc.
The physical Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD discs hit shelves on March 27, 2018.
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I remember the Best Buy steelbook was the one everyone wanted. It had that striking red and white art. Target had their own exclusive with a "Meet the Porgs" featurette, because apparently, we hadn't had enough of the screaming space puffins yet.
Why the Timing of the Release Mattered
The December release window has become the "Star Wars slot," but The Last Jedi was originally supposed to come out in May 2017. Disney pushed it back to December to give Rian Johnson more time and, let's be real, because The Force Awakens proved that Star Wars owns Christmas.
But this date also set up a bit of a disaster for the franchise.
Because The Last Jedi came out in mid-December, and Disney refused to budge on the May 25, 2018 release of Solo: A Star Wars Story, we had two Star Wars movies in just five months. Most experts, including the folks over at The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline, point to this "Star Wars fatigue" as the reason Solo became the first real box office bomb for the brand.
It was too much, too fast.
The Lasting Legacy of December 15
Looking back from 2026, that December release feels like the moment the fandom fractured. You’ve got the "Saltier Than Crait" crowd who still dissects every frame of the throne room fight, and you’ve got the "Reylo" fans who found their identity in the Force-bond scenes.
Regardless of where you stand, the release date of Star Wars The Last Jedi marks the point where Star Wars stopped being a "universal" experience and became a "choose your own adventure" style of fandom.
Actionable Insights for Fans & Collectors:
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- Check your discs: If you own the original 2018 4K Blu-ray, keep it. The transfer is widely considered superior to some of the later streaming versions due to the higher bit rate for the HDR.
- The Documentary is key: If you’re still mad about the movie, watch The Director and the Jedi (included on the Blu-ray). It shows the massive tension on set, including Mark Hamill’s honest disagreements with Rian Johnson. It’s some of the most transparent "making-of" footage ever released for a blockbuster.
- Track the Value: Original 2017 premiere tickets and specific "Opening Night Fan Event" popcorn tins have actually started to go up in value on secondary markets like eBay, especially those in mint condition.
If you’re planning a rewatch, try to view it as a standalone film rather than a middle chapter. It hits different when you aren't worrying about how it connects to the rest of the messy timeline.