Look Inside Disneys New Star Wars Land
Disney Parks has been busy constructing two Star Wars-inspired lands for Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts. The first detailed model of these projects is being displayed at the 2017 D23 Expo this weekend, run by D23, the official Disney Fan Club, in Anaheim, Calif. The progress on the Star Wars-inspired lands was updated by the amusement park and resort giant earlier this year in March. The parks, one at Disneyland Park in California, and the other at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, will each be 14 acres in size. They will be filled with actors representing creatures and characters from the Star Wars universe, seeking to be immersive, Disney says. Guests will "find themselves in the middle of the action," according to George Savvas, public relations director for Disneyland. This "middle of the action" immersion includes two unique attractions. The first lets guests pilot the Millennium Falcon, the renowned starship of Han Solo on a customized, undercover mission. The second attraction takes guests into the heat of a battle between the First Order and the Resistance. The three-dimensional model of the Star Wars-inspired lands, unveiled on the D23 Expo floor, shows the detailed landscape of a remote trading port on a "never before seen planet.", Disney's Star Wars-themed attractions come after the 2015 release of Star Wars The Force Awakens and the 2016 release of Star Wars Rogue One, directed by J. J. Abrams and Gareth Edwards, respectively. Abrams' The Force Awakens reprises the story of the original series created by George Lucas in 1977. The Series turned 40 on May 25, 2017. The Star Wars-themed lands will open sometime in 2019.