As Disney progresses on its Star Wars Land attraction, it prepares a new world unlike any the park has ever seen. Disney put out an image of the new park’s concept in a countdown to the time until the project is complete. Disney started construction on Star Wars Land on April 14. Once everything is finished, park visitors will be able to immerse themselves in a new world. The particular planet being built for the attraction will be an all new creation specifically for the parks, so even Star Wars super fans can experience something new.
See concept art for Star Wars Land – currently under construction @ Disneyland/Disney World: https://t.co/VmzP4Lw4po pic.twitter.com/6vHFdptUUp
— IMDb (@IMDb) July 11, 2016
Visitors will be able to experience the meticulously created new Star Wars world and all that Disney will build around it to make it seem real and complete. Though the planet is all new, elements familiar to people who have watched Star Wars will, of course, be visible, including a Millennium Falcon you can pilot, something even the most casual Star Wars fans have long dreamed of doing.
Visitors will get to roam the huge 14 acres Star Wars Land attraction at the end of its anticipated completion, but other attractions have to temporarily close. Rivers of America and the Disneyland Railroad need to close while Star Wars Land is being built, but will reopen newly renovated. The new attraction is currently under construction at both United States Disney parks, Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, and the older Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and will both host Star Wars Land, to the delight of guests who may have one or the other park a little closer to home.
Perhaps the most anticipated by guests are the colorful new Star Wars characters they will encounter at the park. One of the perks of Disney purchasing Star Wars is that they can bring Star Wars to life in ways that Disney is known for with its other properties. The new park opening should fit snugly in between the five remaining new Star Wars movies yet to be released. Disney can always update the attraction as new elements are revealed in the three upcoming Star Wars spinoffs and two upcoming Star Wars episode movies.
As the Los Angeles Times reports, nobody knows when the Disney attraction will actually open. Disney officials haven’t put a date on it, as they’ve never done an expansion this large before. They are working quickly while altering some of the parks’ previous attractions to make room for more Star Wars stuff. There are already well-known Star Wars attractions in Disney parks, but they are not nearly as extensive as what Disney has planned. In Tomorrowland you can still ride Hyperspace Mountain, previously known as Space Mountain before the occupation by Star Wars .
As MiceChat reports, there is also still Star Tours, a 3D simulation ride that began its first incarnation at Disney parks in the 1980s as the first non-Disney ride. Aside from some other Star Wars- themed rides and attractions, Disney also held Star Wars Weekends up until this year. The Star Wars Celebration events around the world, including the one starting this week in England, should be enough of a replacement until Star Wars Land is complete.
In the meantime, Star Wars movie aficionados are gearing up to witness the return of Darth Vader in Star Wars Rogue One . The Star Wars spinoff movie is scheduled to be released on December 16. It will feature a sort of prequel adventure to the original Star Wars movie, Star Wars: A New Hope . It will feature a new cast, but James Earl Jones will return to reprise his role as the iconic Darth Vader. Since Rogue One takes place between Episode III and IV , fans might get a chance to learn what happened to Anakin Skywalker in the years between his severe scarring and his eventual rise to power.
Star Wars Land is also likely to feed the lore surrounding the franchise and add something new to its legacy.
[Photo by Disney Parks Via Getty Images]