Part 4/9:
One critical factor overlooked in these summaries is the enormous expense of marketing and production. For example, The Force Awakens, which grossed over $2 billion worldwide, reportedly cost over $500 million to produce alone, not including the hundreds of millions spent on marketing. When marketing costs (which often run around $150 million per film) are factored in, the net profitability diminishes significantly.
Other installments reveal similar trends:
Rogue One: An estimated profit of $281 million
Last Jedi: About $346 million in profit
Solo: A loss of around $90 million
Rise of Skywalker: An estimated profit of $89 million, barely breaking even and not accounting for added marketing costs.