Soon, guests will have a chance to pilot one of the most famous starships in the galaxy when Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run opens inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland Park. The interactive attraction will have guests 38″ and up creating their own adventures.
Guests will settle into the cockpit of “the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy” and discover what surprises the “bucket of bolts” has to offer.
Chewbacca has flown the Falcon to the Black Spire Outpost for repairs following the events of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. In exchange for parts, Chewie has loaned the ship to smuggler Hondo Ohnaka for a mission which is the focus of the attraction.
Hondo is a Weequay pirate that is featured in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels who is always looking for the next big opportunity.
Guests meet Hondo as he’s running Ohnaka Transport Solutions, a “legitimate business” on Batuu. He asks for help as he has more cargo than he can handle and needs extra flight crews…especially those that won’t ask a lot of questions.
This is the first time that Hondo has appeared in a non-animated form, so creator Dave Filoni was brought in to help design the character’s audio-animatronic.
Guests will board the Falcon through an access hatch on the starboard airlock, then spend some time in the main hold where they can sit at the infamous chess table or check out the ship’s equipment.
The interactive attraction was a collaborative effort between Industrial Light & Magic and Walt Disney Imagineering. Imagineers also worked with filmmakers to help ensure authenticity of the Falcon, including hoses, pipes, switches, and the stickers on the hull. To continue the adventure, Hondo has made adjustments to some of the controls and added some new tricks, like a harpoon.
When it’s time for the mission to begin, guests will be assigned one of three different roles.
2 Pilots will work together to steer the ship. The left pilot will control horizontal motion, while the right pilot controls vertical motion, both trying to avoid obstacles that could cause damage.
2 Gunners will use blasters and missiles to defend the ship and its cargo. Guests can switch to manual targeting for a greater challenge.
2 Flight Engineers will manage the ship’s systems, trying to keep the Falcon from falling apart. They’ll repair damage and take control of some “special modifications” that Hondo installed for their special mission.
Guests will know when they’re needed by the buttons that light up in front of them.
Once the Falcon is powered up, guests will make the jump to lightspeed, with Hondo (and Chewbacca) helping them along the way.
If the ship sustains damage from obstacles or enemy fire that isn’t repaired, the ship’s handling may be affected.
Following their mission, Hondo will let guests know how they did, and if it didn’t go as planned, the ship’s hallways may show damage as the guests leave the Falcon.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens May 31st at Disneyland Park and August 29th at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Source: Disney
Tom is the host and producer of the DIS Unplugged: Disneyland Edition podcast, plus Disneyland Editor of The DIS. He enjoys traveling with his wife and teenage son. At this point, their favorite destination is Alaska, with a FIFTH cruise there planned for the Summer of 2019. In his spare time he volunteers with Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts, and help found his son's former Cub Scout Pack. His favorite Disneyland attraction is Space Mountain.
