Credit: LucasfilmIn a galaxy not so far away, an extinct project inspired by the ever-expanding Star Wars franchise continues to stir debate among fans.
Since the premiere of Star Wars: A New Hope in 1977, George Lucas’ Star Wars franchise has amassed a massive fanbase spanning through generations of Jedi and Sith, enchanted by the distant worlds, unique characters, action-filled stories, stunning visuals, and undoubtedly, the mesmerizing lightsaber battles.
Related: Mark Hamill Bids Farewell to Iconic Role for Heartbreaking Reason
Disney and Star Wars
With the popularity of George Lucas’s franchise skyrocketing to galaxies far, far away, it came as no surprise that The Walt Disney Company would attempt to buy Lucasfilm to add it to its expanding portfolio of studios, currently listing Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Walt Disney Studios.
Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012 for a reported sum of $4.05 billion in the form of cash and stock.
While the fanbase has grown to match the pace of the ever-expanding Star Wars universe, fans have had mixed reactions to some of the most recent installments of the franchise, including the sequel trilogy — Episode VII, Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Episode VIII, Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), and Episode IX, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) — and some Disney+ original series, eventually triggering a massive change in Lucasfilm and Disney.
In a galaxy (not so) far, far away…
Regardless, in 2019, and under the wing of The Walt Disney Company, the Star Wars universe inspired a breathtaking immersive land nestled in Disney’s Hollywood Studios — one of Walt Disney World Resort’s four theme parks — Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
The highly immersive land allowed Star Wars fans of all ages to explore different dining and shopping locations inspired by the distant worlds portrayed in the franchise, giving them a chance to become smugglers and pilot the legendary Millennium Falcon in Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run or show their support for the Resistance in Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance — the two attractions available in the immersive land.
Additionally, guests could meet and interact with First Order Stormtroopers, Kylo Ren, Rey, Chewbacca, and Vi Moradi, a spy for the Resistance introduced exclusively for the immersive land.
Disney changes Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge forever
While Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge initially operated in a strict and carefully crafted timeline set during the events of the sequel trilogy, Disney announced that it would break this immersive storytelling to allow itself to introduce more characters from the Star Wars universe into the land, opening the possibilities for new experiences as well.
Since this announcement was revealed, guests have had the chance to meet Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison) and Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) from the Disney+ original series The Book of Boba Fett (2021), Din Djarin, better known as Mando (Pedro Pascal), and Grogu (who fans fondly call Baby Yoda) from The Mandalorian (2019) at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Walt Disney World Resort’s Disney’s Hollywood Studios and its California counterpart in Disneyland Park.
However, new characters have caused polemic due to their exclusive appearances at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disneyland Park, with the latest examples being Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), General Hera Syndulla (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), and Chopper from the Disney+ original series Ahsoka (2023).
Beyond Batuu
With the smashing success Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge had at Disneyland Park and Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Disney World, it was no surprise The Walt Disney Company would find a way to further improve its immersive offerings inspired by George Lucas’ franchise and so the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser was born.
The Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser was a fully immersive, all-inclusive, multi-day experience at a deluxe hotel themed into a spacecraft, the Halcyon, where guests could interact with some characters of the beloved franchise including First Order Stormtroopers, Kylo Ren, Rey, Chewbacca, and R2-D2, allowing them to journey to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disney’s Hollywood Studios during their exclusive stay.
The end of an era, Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser closed permanently
While the luxurious stay was attractive to fans of the Star Wars franchise, its price was out of this world. After a successful period during the hotel’s opening, attendance quickly dropped, making the luxurious stay nearly impossible to maintain by The Walt Disney Company.
Shocking fans worldwide, Disney announced the permanent closure of the luxurious Star Wars-themed hotel earlier this year, with the last “cruise” departing on September 28, 2023.
Extinct Star Wars project continues to stir debate
Despite the Star Wars project going extinct a few months ago, the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser continues to stir debate among fans, who have created a “memorial” to the overpriced experience at Galaxy’s Edge.
TikTok user @southernsolobelle shared the “memorial” site for the luxurious hotel, with former guests (or passengers) of the Starcruiser leaving messages on ribbons written in Aurebesh (a language used in the Star Wars franchise), with some reading “Forever as one,” “Together as one,” and “We miss you.” You can see the video below or click here to watch it.
People that miss the starcruiser are leaving thoughtful reminders of what once was at the now closed gate of the shuttle entrance that bridged the gap between the Halcyon and Batuu.
Its possible it’s not gone forever. If it were to come back, what changes would you like to see made?#starwars #disney #galaxysedge #hollywoodstudios #fyp
@southernsolobelle People that miss the starcruiser are leaving thoughtful reminders of what once was at the now closed gate of the shuttle entrance that bridged the gap between the Halcyon and Batuu. Its possible it’s not gone forever. If it were to come back, what changes would you like to see made? #starwars #disney #galaxysedge #hollywoodstudios #fyp
The “memorial” is located in what used to be the gate for the transports that bridged the “space” between the Halcyon and Batuu.
While some guests commented on their emotional memories aboard the Halcyon and exploring Batuu during their stay, many took the chance to shame Disney for not making the experience more accessible, as that would have increased attendance dramatically.
“Maybe if they didn’t charge like 5k for 2 nights for a larp more people could have gone. Good riddance,” wrote one viewer. Another added, “I really wanted to go to it, just couldn’t afford it and didn’t have enough time to save up before they closed it.”
A TikTok user joined the conversation by sarcastically commenting, “I am shocked – shocked! – a $5,000 a night hotel had trouble finding customers.” At the same time, another criticized the demonstration by saying, “They treating an overpriced hotel like a war memorial.”
Some users commented that, while they have seen the “memorial” for the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, the display “keeps getting taken down,” likely by Disney officials or cast members instructed to do so. The current status of the display is unclear as of the publication of this article.
It is worth mentioning that a similar attempt to create a memorial for the nighttime spectacular Fantasmic! at Disneyland Park following the tragic incident that caused an extended cancellation of the show stirred controversy online, with many accusing the “Disney adults” who were trying to start this “memorial” of being immature and inappropriate.
What do you think of this “memorial” to the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser immersive hotel? Is there a way Disney could have extended the life of the luxurious experience? Share your opinion with Inside the Magic in the comments below!
Please note that the story outlined in this article is based on a personal Disney Parks guest experience. No two guest experiences are alike, and this article does not necessarily align with Inside the Magic’s personal views on Disney Park operations.