Lucasfilm and Disney Parks have a long history together, collaborating on many attractions decades before Disney even bought Lucasfilm in October of 2012. These attractions can be found in Disney Parks around the world and are some of my very favourite experiences when I visit. It is not only because I am a HUGE Star Wars and Indiana Jones fan, but because these attractions are some of the most immersive and comprehensive to be added to the Parks. Don’t forget to check out Part 2 next!
Captain EO
The only Lucasfilm attraction to not be based off of one of the two biggest franchises, Captain EO was a 3D sci-fi musical adventure film that originally was shown in Epcot and Disneyland in 1986.
The story was about Captain EO and his crew discovering a planet lacking in colour and life which was ruled by the Supreme Leader and her darkness. The crewmembers and Captain EO use music and dance to bring back colour and happiness to the planet.
The film was about 17 minutes long and starred Michael Jackson as Captain EO and Anjelica Huston, known in the Disney family as Queen Clarion in the Tinker Bell films, as the Supreme Leader. George Lucas served as the executive producer and the film was directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The name EO was derived from Eos, the Greek goddess of dawn. The film featured two original songs “We are Here to Change the World” and “Another Part of Me”. Captain EO become an attraction in Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Paris as well.
The film was replaced by various shows around the Parks throughout the years but was brought back in 2010 to honour Michael Jackson after his death in June of 2009.
Here are the various dates and locations of the Captain EO attraction.
First Run:
1. Epcot: Journey into Imagination, September 12, 1986 – July 6, 1994
2. Disneyland: Tomorrowland, September 18, 1986 – April 6, 1997
3. Tokyo Disneyland: Tomorrowland, March 20, 1987 – September 1, 1996
4. Disneyland Paris: Discoveryland, April 12, 1992 – August 17, 1998
Second Run:
1. Disneyland: February 23, 2010 – June 2014
2. Tokyo Disneyland: July 1, 2010 – June 30, 2014
3. Epcot: July 2, 2010 – December 6, 2015
4. Disneyland Paris: June 12, 2010 – April 12, 2015
Star Tours
Star Tours is an immensely popular attraction that has been replicated in 4 of the Disney Parks around the world. The original Star Tours opened in Disneyland with such massive crowds that the Park stayed opened for 60 straight hours from 10:00 am on January 9th till 10:00 pm on January 11th.
Disney originally had ideas to build a simulator ride based on the film The Black Hole (1979) to replace Adventure thru Inner Space. However, since the film was not as popular as Disney hoped, they approached George Lucas to collaborate on a Star Wars attraction. Star Tours was created as the first non-Disney I.P. attraction. Disney Imagineering bought military-grade flight simulators and built the ride system while Lucasfilm created the film guests would watch while in the attraction. When both of these aspects were done, a programmer sat in the attraction and perfectly timed every dip and turn with a joystick. The cost to build Star Tours was twice as much as it took to build all of Disneyland in 1955, but the result was well worth it.
The StarSpeeder 3000 brought 40 passengers on a flight to the moon of Endor. The small craft was piloted by Captain RX-24, or more commonly known as Rex, who was voiced by Paul Reubens (Hello Pee-wee Herman!). The queue of Star Tours is based on a spaceship boarding terminal. Two of the maintenance droids were reimagined audio-animatronic geese from the America Sings attraction. The safety pre-show video featured Star Wars aliens as well as the Imagineers with their families. Star Tours opened up in Disney-MGM Studios in 1989 with an exterior based on a Ewok village. Tokyo Disneyland’s version also opened in 1989 and Star Tours was part of the opening day attractions in Disneyland Paris in 1992. The original Star Tours operated for a combined total of 29 years between opening in Disneyland in 1987 and closing in Disneyland Paris in 2016.
The new and updated attraction opened as Star Tours – The Adventures Continue in 2011 in Disneyland and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Now guests board the StarSpeeder 1000 and experience a randomized sequence of events based on different planets from the entire Star Wars saga. C-3PO, voiced by Anthony Daniels, is accidently the pilot on a ship that is trying to get a Rebel spy to safety. In November of 2015, a scene from The Force Awakens was added. The queue is fairly similar as the original but there are many hidden jokes throughout. Old Captain Rex is in the queue and says a few of his original lines such as “I’m still getting use to my programming”. There are hidden Mickeys and droids “paging Egroeg Sacul”. One thing that remained the same over all the changes and upgrades to Star Tours is that the flight number is always #1401, which is the street address of Walt Disney Imagineering.
Here are the various dates and locations of Star Tours.
Star Tours:
1. Disneyland: Tomorrowland, January 9, 1987 – July 27, 2010
2. Tokyo Disneyland: Tomorrowland, July 12, 1989 – April 2, 2012
3. Disney-MGM Studios: Echo Lake, December 15, 1989 – September 7, 2010
4. Disneyland Paris: Discoveryland, April 12, 1992 – March 16, 2016
Star Tours – The Adventures Continue:
1. Disney’s Hollywood Studios: May 20, 2011 – Present
2. Disneyland: June 3, 2011 – Present
3. Tokyo Disneyland: May 7, 2013 – Present
4. Disneyland Paris: March 26, 2017 – Present
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular!
The first Indiana Jones attraction to come to a Disney Park was a live stunt show in Echo Lake, Disney-MGM Studios. This show is still preformed several times each day showcasing scenes from Raiders of the Lost Ark. Originally it was hoped that this would be an opening day attraction on May 1, 1989 but the show was not ready until a few months later.
This 25 minute show features three scenes straight out of the film. The first scene takes place in a Peruvian temple where Indy must outwit many booby traps in order to safely secure an idol. The golden idol is an exact replica of the one used in the film, down to every detail. The second scene takes place on the streets of Cairo where Indy and Marion must escape a massive street fight. The third and final scene features Indy and Marion stopping the Nazi airplane from taking off to Berlin with the Ark.
The amphitheatre the show takes place in holds over 2000 guests. This stunt show started a trend of stunt shows at various theme parks. This stunt show opened the same year as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was released.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios: Echo Lake, August 25, 1989 – Present
Interesting Post