'Star Wars' has strong first night but falls short compared to previous movies

Plenty of force was with "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" on its first night in theaters, but it fell short of the two previous films in the trilogy. "The Rise of Skywalker" brought in an estimated $40 million in North America in its Thursday night previews, the fifth biggest Thursday opening ever. The first film, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," earned $57 million its Thursday night previews in 2015, at the time the biggest of all time. It was topped by the $60 million take of "Avengers: Endgame" earlier this year. The second film in the trilogy, "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," had a $45 million tally on its opening Thursday night in 2017.