Star Wars prequels outperform original trilogy on Disney+
In 2025, Star Wars prequels topped Disney+ viewership. Streaming has vindicated George Lucas's legacy against recent Disney controversies.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Star Wars prequels now outperform the original trilogy on Disney+
In 1983, Atari buried millions of E.T. cartridges in a New Mexico desert, symbolizing a colossal commercial failure. Four decades later, a similar symbolic burial haunts the Star Wars franchise: die-hard fans want to burn Disney’s films while reclaiming George Lucas’s prequels as the true legacy. 2025 streaming data supports this shift: Episodes I, II, and III dominated the global top three most-watched spots on Disney+, according to internal platform figures. This contradicts years of critical narrative that dismissed these installments.
Why the prequels are winning in the streaming era
The prequels’ plot, focused on the fall of the Republic and Palpatine’s political manipulation, offers complexity absent from the original trilogy. While the first trilogy relied on the classic good-versus-evil archetype, the prequels added layers of conspiracy, war as distraction, and a villain infiltrating the system from within. This approach, once criticized for its dialogue and excessive CGI, has aged better than critics predicted. On streaming platforms, where viewers can binge and revisit content, narrative density gains value.
2025 audiences appreciate Anakin Skywalker’s evolution, a tragic arc with deeper motivations than simply rescuing a princess. Additionally, the absence of controversial agendas in recent Disney productions—accused of prioritizing diversity over coherence—has made the prequels a refuge for "classic" Star Wars. Even the widely disliked Jar Jar Binks is more tolerated in retrospect, as his boomer humor occupies just one episode.
Disney’s fiasco and the resurgence of series
Disney’s management since acquiring Lucasfilm in 2012 has been inconsistent. The sequel trilogy generated massive box office returns but divided the fanbase; Episode IX ("The Rise of Skywalker") was met with mockery for its plot twist ("Somehow, Palpatine returned"). On the positive side, the series "Andor" has been acclaimed as one of the galaxy’s best productions, offering a raw portrayal of the rebellion as a terrorist movement that connects with the political seriousness of the prequels. "The Clone Wars," in its final seasons, has also been revalued.
However, the statistic that hurts Disney executives most is that despite hundreds of millions invested in new series and films, the Star Wars catalog remains led by the three movies industry critics despised. The "trash" that certain sectors argue should be incinerated alongside Atari’s cartridges is what pays for subscriptions.
The economy of nostalgia and fan edits
The prequel phenomenon has also spawned a parallel market of fan-edited versions, which remove childish sequences (like Jar Jar) and reorder scenes to improve pacing. One example: the "fan edit" of "The Phantom Menace" without the Gungan character. These works, though illegal, demonstrate the vitality of an intellectual property its owners fail to exploit fully. The fandom economy, with millions of viewing hours, tutorials, and discussions, generates intangible value Disney hasn’t entirely monetized.
Ultimately, the streaming market has spoken: political complexity sells better than empty special effects. George Lucas, with his ambitious ideas and clumsy execution, has been rescued by a generation that grew up with his memes and now decides what deserves to be seen. And what doesn’t? Let it be buried in the desert.
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In 1983, Atari buried millions of E.T. cartridges in a New Mexico desert, symbolizing a colossal commercial failure. Four decades later, a similar symbolic burial haunts the Star Wars franchise: die-hard fans want to burn Disney’s films while reclaiming George Lucas’s prequels as the true legacy. 2025 streaming data supports this shift: Episodes I, II, and III dominated the global top three most-watched spots on Disney+, according to internal platform figures. This contradicts years of critical narrative that dismissed these installments.
Why the prequels are winning in the streaming era
The prequels’ plot, focused on the fall of the Republic and Palpatine’s political manipulation, offers complexity absent from the original trilogy. While the first trilogy relied on the classic good-versus-evil archetype, the prequels added layers of conspiracy, war as distraction, and a villain infiltrating the system from within. This approach, once criticized for its dialogue and excessive CGI, has aged better than critics predicted. On streaming platforms, where viewers can binge and revisit content, narrative density gains value.
2025 audiences appreciate Anakin Skywalker’s evolution, a tragic arc with deeper motivations than simply rescuing a princess. Additionally, the absence of controversial agendas in recent Disney productions—accused of prioritizing diversity over coherence—has made the prequels a refuge for "classic" Star Wars. Even the widely disliked Jar Jar Binks is more tolerated in retrospect, as his boomer humor occupies just one episode.
Disney’s fiasco and the resurgence of series
Disney’s management since acquiring Lucasfilm in 2012 has been inconsistent. The sequel trilogy generated massive box office returns but divided the fanbase; Episode IX ("The Rise of Skywalker") was met with mockery for its plot twist ("Somehow, Palpatine returned"). On the positive side, the series "Andor" has been acclaimed as one of the galaxy’s best productions, offering a raw portrayal of the rebellion as a terrorist movement that connects with the political seriousness of the prequels. "The Clone Wars," in its final seasons, has also been revalued.
However, the statistic that hurts Disney executives most is that despite hundreds of millions invested in new series and films, the Star Wars catalog remains led by the three movies industry critics despised. The "trash" that certain sectors argue should be incinerated alongside Atari’s cartridges is what pays for subscriptions.
The economy of nostalgia and fan edits
The prequel phenomenon has also spawned a parallel market of fan-edited versions, which remove childish sequences (like Jar Jar) and reorder scenes to improve pacing. One example: the "fan edit" of "The Phantom Menace" without the Gungan character. These works, though illegal, demonstrate the vitality of an intellectual property its owners fail to exploit fully. The fandom economy, with millions of viewing hours, tutorials, and discussions, generates intangible value Disney hasn’t entirely monetized.
Ultimately, the streaming market has spoken: political complexity sells better than empty special effects. George Lucas, with his ambitious ideas and clumsy execution, has been rescued by a generation that grew up with his memes and now decides what deserves to be seen. And what doesn’t? Let it be buried in the desert.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (162 replies).
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