Megan Rickards 
Star Wars Main Stars and Creator Arrive Ahead of Opening to Dedicate New Land
Last night, May 29th, 2019, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California held its official dedication ceremony. It was an event that was years in the making. Ever since being first announced at D23 (Disney’s biannual event held at the Anaheim Convention Center across from the park), on August 15, 2015, fans have been clambering to know as much about this new expansion to the park as possible.
At first, details were expectedly few and far between. Ever since Disney bought the Star Wars property from creator George Lucas back in 2012, the House of Mouse has been very tight-lipped with anything regarding this galactic property. Any details that “escaped” were carefully planned so as to draw more interest in the property that had mostly been silent since the release of Revenge of the Sith back in 2005.
This monumental event was presided over by Disney Chairman and CEO Bob Iger, who brought up not only the creator of the entire franchise George Lucas himself, but also Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Chewbacca who appeared sitting in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon, and Harrison Ford (Han Solo himself). Not one to miss an opportunity to honor one of his close friends (and movie co-pilot), prior to banging on the Falcon in order to “fix” it, Ford looked at the crowd and referencing the amazing man that portrayed Chewbacca all the way up until 2015’s The Force Awakens, uttered this beautiful line, “Peter, this one’s for you”. If you thought the line from that movie, “Chewie, we’re home”, was good…oh this new line could give that one a run for its money.
This from a franchise that was pretty much dead following the release of the prequel movies from 1999 all the way to 2005. It likely didn’t help, that a few years after in 2008, an animated series called Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiered to lackluster success. From Anakin suddenly having a frankly quite annoying padawan practically out of nowhere, to the character designs to even the stories themselves, the show seemed to be just like any other, struggling to find its footing through the course of the first season. From this alone, it appeared as if the franchise had passed its prime and was destined for the garbage compactor.
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Then season two of the show came out and little by little, it began picking up speed, traction and most unbelievably to many, actual fans. It became so popular that now, even over ten years after its untimely end, it’s coming back for a seventh and final season on Disney’s own streaming service to be released on November 12, 2019, for a twelve-episode run.
Since then, the franchise has had both its ups and its downs. Definitely one of its ups was first the announcement of Star Wars Land, now known as Galaxy’s Edge, and now the dedication of it a little over four years later. After all that time, it’s difficult to believe that we are a little more than 24 hours away from its grand public opening on May 31, 2019. The level of anticipation and excitement just continues to build. If you missed the ceremony, you can watch it here:
Due to this, it’s no wonder that Mark talked about his amazement at going from a single ride in a Disney theme park (Star Tours), to now having an entire land dedicated to this beloved franchise. It’s something that many can help but agree with. From what was shown and has been talked about, this is definitely not a stop to be missed during your visit to the happiest place (not) on earth.
As you stop by there, please feel free to tag your pictures using #FutureotForce so we can see not only which side your allegiance falls (Rebel or First Order), but also what type of journey you craft for yourself in this galaxy not so far, far away. We can’t wait to see it.
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Source: Disneyland Resort
I am a major “Star Wars” fan who currently writes for Future of the Force and is absolutely loving it! Until my writing career really takes off, I am now writing for Future of the Force full time, having graduated Spring 2018 with my Bachelor’s Degree in Literature and Writing.
My other interests include ABC’s “The Good Doctor”, CW’s “Arrow” and “The Flash”, and DC’s “Batman”. Of all the iterations of Batman, my favorite would definitely have to be 1992’s “Batman: The Animated Series”.
If you want to stop by and talk, please feel free to send me a tweet. I promise to get back to you as soon as I can.
