Star Wars Galaxys Edge Origins Concept to Reality

It’s here…the wait is over. Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge is open in Disneyland Park and later this fall in Walt Disney World’s Hollywood Studios (August 29, 2019), and the early reviews are in… But what is the story behind the new land, the back story, the real-life back story, and the Star Wars story behind the land? You can trace the real-life Galaxy’s Edge back story all the way to the opening of “Star Tours the Adventure Continues” in 2011, which replaced the original Star Tours that opened in Disneyland in 1987 then later in Tokyo, Disney MGM Studios, and Disneyland Paris. As the story goes, the high-level collaboration between George

Lucas and Bob Iger led to the eventual Disney acquisition of LucasFilm on October 30^th, 2012. Less than a year later at the D23 Expo in 2013, the mysterious “Project Orange Harvest” appeared including crates labeled Banta Milk, Protocol Droids, Lightsabers, Thermal Detonators and top-secret plans with blueprints rolled up and clearly visible. All of them addressed to “Project Orange Harvest” care of Walt Disney Imagineering.

During that 2013 D23 Expo, Disney diverted most fans with the new Disney Springs project and some sort of top-secret Avatar project. But Star Wars and Disney Park enthusiasts exploded with speculation. Star Wars Land is in the works, what would it be? Maybe it’s an entire theme park? Where will it be? Hollywood Studios of course in Florida, Walt Disney World finally getting its Cars Land. How many Star Wars Lands would there be? Rumors were all over for the two years leading to the 2015 D23 Expo. Everything from a themed area replacing the Echo Lake area of Hollywood Studios stretching to Star Tours, or an X-wing Spinner ride being added to Tomorrowland, to the closure of the Indiana Jones Stunt Show and Muppet Vision 3D. While everyone had a rumor, only Disney knew exactly what was being proposed, and they kept everyone else guessing for two long years. At the 2015 D23 Expo, Bob Iger gave us an update, along with our first look at concept art. The Land would be occupied by many inhabitants, humanoids, aliens, and droids, the attractions, the entertainment, everything we create will be part of our storytelling.

Nothing will be out of character or stray from the mythology. The new land “will introduce you to a Star Wars planet you’ve never seen before — a gateway planet located on the outer rim, full of places and characters familiar and not so familiar.” We also learned then that both Walt Disney World and Disneyland would both get “Star Wars Land”.

At the annual Disney Shareholder Meeting in March 2016, Bob Iger announced that construction of the 14 acre “Star-Wars Themed Land” would start in April 2016; about a year later February 2017 during a quarterly conference call, Bob Iger announced the opening of Pandora, the World of Avatar, and he also revealed the “Star Wars” themed lands would be opening in 2019. A year later at the D23 Summit 2017, Bob Chapek revealed the name “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge” and announced the Star Wars Hotel for Walt Disney World in Florida.

Since then, we learned the names of the attractions, restaurants, and shops. We learned that BB8, Chewy, Kylo Ren, and First Order Troopers would be roaming the land; but hold on. Let’s take a step back first.

Galaxy’s Edge will be nothing you have ever experienced before, and I’m not talking about the size and scale of the physical land, I’m talking about the story. After all, Disney and LucasFilm are storytellers at heart and to understand how all of this fits together you have to go back to 2012, the same year Disney acquired LucasFilm. The creation of the LucasFilm Story Group, a group of individuals whose job is to keep the story cohesive across all media, movies, novels, comics, animation, and everything else started with a reboot of the Star Wars Universe in April 2014 – retiring much of the expanded universe storyline – rebranding it “Star Wars Legends” – so all of those novels and comic books you read before 2014 – most likely they are now legends and didn’t actually happen in the Star Wars Universe.   The only material produced before 2014 that is considered canon is of course the Lucas-produced movies, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and the Darth Maul – Son of Dathomir comic book series (based on unproduced Clone Wars Scripts). The story group set the foundation for connective tissue between everything produced and everything that will be produced moving forward. The story group is responsible for connecting Star Tours to Rebels, Death Troupers appearing in Rogue One, and Star Wars Rebels where the timelines cross, to L3-37 pointing out that Lando Calrissian can’t find the Black Spire without her in Solo. Yep, that Black Spire, on the planet Batuu, which is Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.

Disney could have easily recreated a familiar planet, like Tatooine, Hoth, or dagoba but instead created an entirely new location. The Planet Batuu – an outpost planet on the very edge of the outer rim, considered the last stop before entering wild space. That is until the hyperspace lanes were defined which ended the need for the last stop before wild space. It has since become a place for scrandrews and those looking to keep a low profile to frequent. It’s covered with mountains and forests and petrified black trees all over the planet. Black Spire Outpost was the primary city named for the petrified black trees – home to a spaceport, canteens and market.

We first learned about the outpost planet Batuu in the Thrawn Alliance novel (2018). The novel is divided into two storylines. In the first storyline, Grand Admiral Thrawn and Darth Vader travel to investigate a disturbance in the Force. In the second storyline, Anakin Skywalker travels to Batuu after his secret wife Senator Padmé Amidala disappears while on a mission to investigate the disappearance of her handmaid Duja.

The novel, Black Spire (2019) is set much more closely to the timeline we will be entering, the timeline that is basically now in the Star Wars Universe between The Last Jedi and Rise of Skywalker.   So, the characters we heard about at D23 2017, BB8, Chewy, Kylo Ren, First Order Troopers, Resistance Officers, all fit that timeline. If you’re looking for other characters, Darth Vader for example, you won’t find him; he isn’t in that timeline, as far as we know. Who knows what JJ Abrams and the Story Group have in store for use in the Rise of Skywalker. The names of the attractions fit that timeline, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run – a simulator ride in which guests pilot the Millennium Falcon. Chewy will be there, but you won’t find Han Solo.

Meanwhile according to the Black Spire novel, after a devastating loss at the hands of the First Order, General Leia Organa has dispatched her agents across the galaxy in search of allies, sanctuary, and firepower—and her top spy, Vi Moradi, may have just found all three on a secluded world at the galaxy’s edge.   Enter the second attraction – Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance – a dark ride in which guests are involved in a battle between the First Order and the Resistance.

The marketplace feels as though it was lifted straight from the novel; it is so perfect you have to wonder if the author was working with the concept art, or if the concept art was created from the author’s description. Either way, that’s the value of the Star Wars Story Group. Oga’s Cantina, Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo, Ronto Roasters, Kat Saka’s Kettle, Savi’s Workshop, Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities, Mubo’s Droid Depot, Bina’s Creature Stall, and Toydarian Toyshop.

The entire land will be interactive via the Disney Play App and magic bands at Walt Disney World. The time period basically now in the Star Wars Universe, is between “The Last Jedi” and “The Rise of Skywalker” so the two attractions fit into that timeline: Millennium Falcon: Smuggles Run and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.   Putting the entire area to line with the theatrical release of “Star Wars the Rise of Skywalker” later this year (December 2019). With the next Star Wars movie after “Rise of Skywalker” not scheduled until 2022, it’s safe to say the events of “Rise of Skywalker” will be incorporated into Galaxy’s Edge with support from the latest cartoon (Star Wars Resistance) and the 2 new live-action series being developed for Disney Plus, The Mandalorian and Cassian Andor (Prequel). Both of them could visit the Black Spire connecting the live-action Star Wars series to their WDW/Disneyland counterparts.

Additional material connecting us to Galaxy’s Edge includes the novel “A Crash of Fate”. In that novel, we learn about Izzy and Jules as childhood friends, climbing the spires of Batuu, inventing silly games, and dreaming of adventures they would share one day. Then, Izzy’s family left abruptly, without even a chance to say goodbye. Izzy’s life became one of constant motion, traveling from one world to the next until her parents were killed and she became a low-level smuggler to make ends meet. Jules remained on Batuu, eventually becoming a farmer like his father but always yearning for something more.

Now, thirteen years after she left, Izzy is returning to Batuu. She’s been hired to deliver a mysterious parcel, and she just wants to finish the job and get going. But upon arrival at Black Spire Outpost, she runs smack into the one person who still means something to her after all this time: Jules.

The attraction between them is immediate, yet despite Jules seeming to be everything she’s ever needed, Izzy hesitates. How can she drag this good-hearted man into the perilous life she’s chosen?

Jules has been trying to figure out his future, but now all he knows for certain is that he wants to be with Izzy. How can he convince her to take a chance on someone who’s never left the safety of his homeworld?

When Izzy’s job goes wrong, the two childhood friends find themselves on the run. And all their secrets will be revealed as they fight to stay alive.

The connectivity between all media types; novels, movies, animated series, live-action series, comics, video games, and beyond is credited to the Star Wars Story Group – by establishing Batuu and the Black Spire as a timeless crossing point where characters can cross paths currently or historically given the star wars story timeline.   Thank You Story Group!

For more from Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge be sure to check out the Story Behind the Story, Opening Day interviews, an interview with Doug Chiang, a special D23 Expo look at creating the Music of Galaxy’s Edge, DJ Rex in action at Oga’s Cantina, An Overview of Batuu, a look at creating galaxy’s edge with an Imagineer, merchandise, Star Wars Comic Books, Star Wars Myths & Fables, Galaxy’s Edge Cookbook, a look behind the Galactic Starcruiser, a Galaxy Far Far Away stage show, and Star Wars Galactic Fireworks from Hollywood Studios.

Looking for more Star Wars check out The Story behind the Galactic Star Cruiser, The Last Hyperspace Hoopla, The Story Behind Galaxy’s Edge, Opening Day Galaxy’s Edge, Galaxy’s Edge Merchandise, Star Wars Weekend 2016, Obi-Wan and Beyond, Stars of the Saga, Star Wars Weekend 2015 Galatic Breakfast, Star Wars Weekend 2014, HyperSpace Hoople 2012

Did you know:  Epcot was the center of the Walt Disney World Millenium Celebration in 2000