MiceAge has been a primary source for all the rumors of Star Wars attractions in the works for the Disney parks, particularly Disneyland, but their latest dispatch is troubling. Problems with over-budget infrastructure implementations have placed almost all Imagineering projects on hold – or canceled. Here’s the part that pertains to Star Wars:
Originally the plan to add Star Wars to Tomorrowland was going to be divided into two phases; a first phase involving some placemaking and a replacement for Captain EO to be finished prior to the 60th Anniversary, and a second phase kicking off in late 2015. The second phase included the Speeder Bike E Ticket ride, Ewok village and forest where Autopia currently is, a Millenium Falcon walk-thru where the PeopleMover platform is, tearing out the decaying PeopleMover tracks and moving the Astro Orbiter up on top of the Space Mountain concourse, and turning Tomorrowland Terrace into an interactive Tatooine Cantina restaurant show. All of that is now on hold indefinitely. Although Anaheim gets off a bit easier with its Star Wars plan on hold, as the plans for many of these Star Wars elements coming to Disney Hollywood Studios in WDW have just been cancelled outright.
None of this has been officially announced, of course, and it might be bunk for all we know… But this doesn’t give us much hope that for expanded Star Wars features at Disneyland in time for the next Celebration.
Well, no matter whether it’s true or not: Star Wars will certainly play a bigger role in the parks in the future. Even if they don’t build a life-sized Falcon, they will find a way to promote the parks through Star Wars. Maybe they’ll just update Star Tours or, instead of creating a cantina, put Star Wars meals on their regular menus. It’s too perfect a marketing opportunity not to be seized.