Guests Furious After Being Kicked Out of Disney Park

Star Wars Day, May the Fourth, was celebrated just a few days ago at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, as well as several other Disney Parks. Disneyland marked the holiday with Disneyland After Dark: Star Wars Nite, which included several meet and greet opportunities with characters like Anakin, Padme, Luke, Leia, and others, as well as themed food and fireworks. Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World held a smaller celebration with a variety of themed snack and food options and costumed Guests spending the day in Galaxy’s Edge.

The Star Wars Nite at Disneyland was an official after-hours event specifically for major Star Wars fans to interact with their favorite characters and celebrate a beloved franchise. With specific opportunities for photo ops, meet-ups, and various events throughout the night, it was a great way for fans to come together. However, Disney World did not offer a separate event for fans, which caused some to take matters into their own hands.

Reportedly, an unofficial Star Wars meet-up had been planned for a group of fans who tried to kick other Guests out of the area for a massive photo op. @ThatJakeKi91 Tweeted about the event, stating, “So, I’ll tweet about this, but y’all just because you schedule a meet up. does not mean you get to kick guest out of certain areas of the park. Literally watched a guy kicking guest out of parts of Batuu for a photo op. Left a really bad taste in our mouth.” According to follow up comments, Disney Cast Members stood by and let the Guest kick other Guests out “for his own personal lightsaber meetup.” The meet-up supposedly consisted of anywhere from over 200 to 700 Guests who took over an entire area of Galaxy’s Edge.

So, I’ll tweet about this, but y’all just because you schedule a meet up. does not mean you get to kick guest out of certain areas of the park. Literally watched a guy kicking guest out of parts of Batuu for a photo op. Left a really bad taste in our mouth.

— Springtime Jake (@ThatJakeKid91) May 5, 2023

It sparked discourse on Twitter, with several people claiming that the meet-up and photo op took place after the Park had closed and that Disney worked with the group to ensure safety and management. According to @ThatJakeKi91, one of the Guests in the meet-up claimed to be an off-the-clock Cast Member telling people they needed to leave so the group could gather. However, whether it happened during or after Park hours, there were still Guests in the area that hadn’t been told by official Cast Members that they needed to leave.

Other comments argued that Disney doesn’t allow meet-ups of that size for anyone unless it’s an official Disney event, referencing previous YouTuber and Influencer meet-ups that were forced off-property due to size and safety concerns. User @Royalbishop009 chimed in, saying that the meet-ups are not sanctioned by Disney, and according to people working in the area, the events have “gotten worse every time it happens.”

Several comments like one from @MusiquePalette complained that situations like this are why “ppl can’t stand SW fans most of the time…they start gatekeeping…u make it hard to love SW BC we don’t want to associate with u ppl.” Unfortunately, it seems as though Walt Disney World desperately needs its own version of a Star Wars Nite or to bring back Star Wars Weekend to allow fans to meet up and gather without impacting the experience of other Guests.

Would you want an official Star Wars event to come to Disney World? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Please note that the experiences mentioned in this article are based on personal Guest experiences. No two Guest experiences are alike. The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily representative of Inside the Magic.