News Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser coming to Walt Disney World 2021

[TP2000]

Interesting that they only mention the popular characters, huh?

And it probably was sent straight from Burbank.

The more people deny where the franchise is…the more sad it becomes

Yes. To be fair, this was from a CBS Radio affiliate, and the entire news segment was filed by "CBS News". I imagine the entire segment, from the Ukraine news to this "fun news" story, was created out of New York and then sent nationwide to affiliate stations to air.

If it was from ABC News, then I would be really worried.

But they only mentioned 1977 characters, and even had the original John Williams score playing in the background under the news reporters segment. They made such a dramatic point to mention that the Halcyon was the ship "where Han Solo and Princess Leia spent their honeymoon!". It could have been something Disney World was opening in 1979 for all we know. The news story was quite notable for the things/characters it never mentioned.

 

[JoeCamel]

One of the big talk radio stations here in SoCal (KNX 1070) just had a news break from CBS News national. After an update on Ukraine, the Star Wars theme song began and they did a quick story about the "new fully immersive Star Wars hotel opening at Disney World". In the approximately 30 second spot they explained it's a "sleek cruise ship in space, where Han Solo and Princess Leia spent their honeymoon", and then said that you "might be hassled by Stormtroopers in the lobby, or discover a transmission from Yoda, or meet any of your other favorite Star Wars friends" and then immediately there was a sound clip of Chewbacca roaring. They covered that the pricing "starts at $4,800 per couple for the two night cruise" and then ended the report.

Missing entirely from this snippet were any mentions of the following:
-Kylo Ren
-Gaya
-That Rey girl who wears the gauzy linen outfits
-Dance lessons, space bingo, or Sabacc tournaments
-Captain Kavan
-Batuu

As someone with a circa 1980 frame of reference for Star Wars, it was striking to me that this national CBS News report in 2022 used only references from the 1977 movie (plus Yoda) and completely ignored the newer characters that Disney forced into this Starcruiser concept. Take that how you will.

I just found it interesting, and more than a little comforting that I'm not the only one who is still scared of Darth Vader but couldn't give a crap about Kylo Ren.

Did they really say "hassled"?
So so-cal

 

[Minthorne]

In 1971 the hotel rooms built were bigger than they are now.

275 years ago in a galaxy far far away they decided let’s start small.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Yes. To be fair, this was from a CBS Radio affiliate, and the entire news segment was filed by "CBS News". I imagine the entire segment, from the Ukraine news to this "fun news" story, was created out of New York and then sent nationwide to affiliate stations to air.

If it was from ABC News, then I would be really worried.

But they only mentioned 1977 characters, and even had the original John Williams score playing in the background under the news reporters segment. They made such a dramatic point to mention that the Halcyon was the ship "where Han Solo and Princess Leia spent their honeymoon!". It could have been something Disney World was opening in 1979 for all we know. The news story was quite notable for the things/characters it never mentioned.

Those kinda promos are cut by the owner…in this case: the Walt Disney company

Why would cbs spend 10 seconds bothering to produce that? Or even write the read?

I assume there will be clips on GMA this week?…I’ll tune in

 

[TP2000]

Did they really say "hassled"?
So so-cal

Is "hassled" a Californian word? I hadn't noticed that. Maybe the news report was filed out of CBS offices in LA then, and not New York?

Although the lead-in was extremely Californian; "it's a mess in west LA as the Hollywood Freeway is jammed due to a sigalert in the left two lanes at Sunset Blvd. You can try and take Mulholland over the hills to get around it but that's loading up now too, or take the 405 and come in on Sunset or on Santa Monica from the west. The Golden State Freeway is also a mess out of Burbank all the way to the 10, as everyone is heading into town on a Saturday night. And now the news from CBS..."

 

[TP2000]

Those kinda promos are cut by the owner…in this case: the Walt Disney company

Why would cbs spend 10 seconds bothering to produce that? Or even write the read?

Oh, I didn't know that. Now that you mention it, the leading Ukraine news was read by a man, and then the Star Wars hotel news was read by a lady. So maybe Disney did cut it themselves and release it to news organizations? Yikes!

 

[JoeCamel]

Is "hassled" a Californian word? I hadn't noticed that. Maybe the news report was filed out of CBS offices in LA then, and not New York?

Although the lead-in was extremely Californian; "it's a mess in west LA as the Hollywood Freeway is jammed due to a sigalert in the left two lanes at Sunset Blvd. You can try and take Mulholland over the Hollywood hills to get around it but that's loading up now too, or take the 405 and come in on Sunset or on Santa Monica from the west. The Golden State Freeway is also a mess out of Burbank all the way to the 10, as everyone is heading into town on a Saturday night. And now the news from CBS..."

It's old hippie speak - I use it often
Very apropos for California culture, other places it is very rare and may get you an annoyed look.
I would guess that spot was created in Glendale rather than Orlando

 

[Centauri Space Station]

Some of the food

 

[LovePop]

I just noticed that the atrium is missing the original atrium that I liked from the concept art:

Look at how many giant windows there are all around, looking out into space. I thought they would play videos in the windows so that the stars fly past, looking like the space ship is going places. And they can show all kinds of stuff: alien planets, nebulas, black holes, whatever. You will never feel claustrophobic. It seems like the actual window is only in one corner:

And I don't think the view changes, ever. That's a real shame. I know the bridge also has big screens, but that's the bridge, not the atrium.

 

[GimpYancIent]

Some of the food

Excellent presentation by the Chef. The various dishes look interesting.

 

[Thelazer]

What are the chances that a union got involved, and since other resorts offer a "dance" or kids party, somehow this "hotels" staff had to be allowed to offer the same (Cheesy) thing... (two claps y'all, hands on knees... get funky with it.....)

What's the reason every "character" is miked, with some kinda headset mic and radio?
Is it the production team (AI based) behind them reminding of the story line?
Is it a producer, triggering the sound FX and cue points??

How flexable is this if someone doesn't want to "play along?"

 

[GimpYancIent]

I just noticed that the atrium is missing the original atrium that I liked from the concept art:

View attachment 624420

Look at how many giant windows there are all around, looking out into space. I thought they would play videos in the windows so that the stars fly past, looking like the space ship is going places. And they can show all kinds of stuff: alien planets, nebulas, black holes, whatever. You will never feel claustrophobic. It seems like the actual window is only in one corner:

View attachment 624421

And I don't think the view changes, ever. That's a real shame. I know the bridge also has big screens, but that's the bridge, not the atrium.

 

[ChrisFL]

I just noticed that the atrium is missing the original atrium that I liked from the concept art:

View attachment 624420

Look at how many giant windows there are all around, looking out into space. I thought they would play videos in the windows so that the stars fly past, looking like the space ship is going places. And they can show all kinds of stuff: alien planets, nebulas, black holes, whatever. You will never feel claustrophobic. It seems like the actual window is only in one corner:

View attachment 624421

And I don't think the view changes, ever. That's a real shame. I know the bridge also has big screens, but that's the bridge, not the atrium.

The view does change, at least I think it does because I saw the screens there change when they went into hyperdrive...plaid, whatever they call it

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

What struck me about this when I watched the DFB video (it's still the only video I've watched in its entirety) and it's what I really liked when I saw it - is that guests are in effect inside a theater.
This is especially apparent when the actors are up on the balconies above the guests.
I can imagine them making their entrance to perform their parts from the back stage area, and I actually like that.
In many ways it's like being inside a play where the actors include the audience in on it.

This reminds me a lot of dinner theater, just on a larger, extended, scale. If you want you can just watch the show but it’s much more fun if you actively participate.

Thanks! I do think a lot of the Starcruiser “experience” requires people (grownups) to overlook some cheesiness and simplicity and just sort of play pretend.


But I think the fact that the surroundings support the theme and run 24/7 can really help people get into it (vs. being in an actual high school gym and saying, “Ok, now let’s all pretend this half of the court is a force field”).

It’s not for everyone. But the people it’s for have been wanting something like this.

Which also mirrors dinner theater, some of us love the interaction and how silly it is, others find the whole concept juvenile. This won’t appeal to everyone but for those that enjoy this type of thing it looks like a blast.

What makes you think those things are not also happening at the same time?

This was actually mentioned in the 3 hour Dis video, they said they hadn’t had a chance to sit down the entire trip because they were constantly doing something. They also said one of them was left out of a mission because of something they didn’t do while at Batuu, this makes it sounds like your choices will affect the storylines you are invited to participate in.

 

[_caleb]

What are the chances that a union got involved, and since other resorts offer a "dance" or kids party, somehow this "hotels" staff had to be allowed to offer the same (Cheesy) thing... (two claps y'all, hands on knees... get funky with it.....)

What's the reason every "character" is miked, with some kinda headset mic and radio?
Is it the production team (AI based) behind them reminding of the story line?
Is it a producer, triggering the sound FX and cue points??

How flexable is this if someone doesn't want to "play along?"

It's pretty clear to me from the videos I've seen that a guest can, at an time, sit down, visit the bar, or return to their room. Nobody is required to participate. Watch how many people just want to record the whole thing. The actors don't call them out or embarrass them, they just keep the story going and interact with guests who respond.

 

[Baloo62]

Soooo....$6000 for a cramped hotel room, some mediocre Escape Room games, Atari-quality graphics, and community theater acting. Geez I'm so torn right now.

 

[_caleb]

This was actually mentioned in the 3 hour Dis video, they said they hadn’t had a chance to sit down the entire trip because they were constantly doing something. They also said one of them was left out of a mission because of something they didn’t do while at Batuu, this makes it sounds like your choices will affect the storylines you are invited to participate in.

Do you know if the DIS get the 4-hour vlogger experience, or the full 2-day press experience?

 

[_caleb]

Soooo....$6000 for a cramped room, some mediocre Escape Room games and community theater acting. Geez I'm so torn right now.

You definitely should look elsewhere. This clearly isn't for you!

 

[Morkey Moose]

While I did (and still do) make fun of the scheduled funtivities, reviews have shown that "missions" start popping up on your schedule once you interact with certain CMs. So yes, bingo exists for little kids without a phone and the wherewithal to dig into the "story," but those older will already be too busy, I don't know, apparently helping Gaya find a pan flute for her acoustic set.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Do you know if the DIS get the 4-hour vlogger experience, or the full 2-day press experience?

They did the full experience.