Disney And Star Wars Are Burying Their Most Embarrassing Failure
A titanic blunder.
For as long as Star Wars has existed, fans have wondered how they would fare in the galaxy. From video and role-playing games to reams of fanfiction, there have always been ways to insert yourself into the franchise. But there’s no experience like Galaxy’s Edge, the Star Wars-themed land in Disney’s Parks. Where else can you see a sleeping Loth cat, sip on some blue milk, and buy a Coke branded in Aurebesh?
For a while, you could fully entrench yourself in the Star Wars experience through the Galactic Starcruiser, an “immersive” hotel stay that claimed to let you “live your Star Wars story.” But the supposed game-changer for fans turned into one of Disney’s most infamous flops, and is now being scrubbed from the park altogether.
The Galactic Starcruiser tried — and failed — to emulate a spacefaring pleasure cruise.
Galaxy’s Edge is going through a transition. The world had always been rooted in the sequel trilogy, with its two themed rides — Rise of the Resistance and Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run — both set during the last three movies. But the sequel era is over now, and Galaxy’s Edge is going more generic, with a refurbishment and rebranding that allows for characters from past eras, like Luke, Leia, and Han, to roam around.
Oga’s Cantina, the themed restaurant in Galaxy’s Edge, recently reopened after renovations, but not all of the changes were focused on this rebrand. WDWNewsToday reports that the Cantina’s Galactic Starcruiser Easter egg has been scrubbed. The Cantina has a notice board with messages in Aurebesh that fans can decode: one, for example, reads, “Flight Crews Wanted, No training necessary, fair pay, great experience. Discretion a must. Inquire at Ohnaka Transport Solutions in the spaceport,” which is a reference to Smuggler’s Run.
The notice board at Oga’s Cantina has been scrubbed of all reference to the Galactic Starcruiser.
But one key message is now missing. Originally, a notice read, “Mechanic Wanted! Experience with Chandrilan class 1 starships required. Ability to speak Shyriiwook a plus. Contact Captain R. Keevan of the Halcyon, CSL.” This was a reference to the Galactic Starcruiser, as the ship’s name was the Halcyon, and fans had the opportunity to meet and interact with Captain Keevan “onboard.”
The Galactic Starcruiser was announced in 2017, opened in 2022, and closed in late 2023. While it got glowing reviews from an early press visit, the guest experience proved to be a little different. In a now-infamous video essay by YouTuber Jenny Nicholson, she described how the windowless “luxury” cabins were disappointing, how a pole blocked her view of the dinner floor show, and how the story’s tie-in app never really worked. The experience just never seemed to justify the exorbitant cost. Now, it looks like Disney will pretend that the whole thing never happened in the first place.
