Disney Finally Announces Replacement For Its Failed Star Wars Project

It's hard to call Disney's ownership of the "Star Wars" intellectual property anything other than a colossal failure. 

Initially, it seemed like the entertainment giant would get off on the right foot, as 2015's "The Force Awakens" was a massive commercial hit. While not exactly the most original premise, it at least delivered impressive special effects, competent plotting, decent humor, and introduced new characters. 

Any momentum though, quickly faded. "The Last Jedi" made significantly less money, and was heavily panned by long-time fans for how it handled the Luke Skywalker character. After a hasty director switch back to JJ Abrams, 2019's "The Rise of Skywalker" was a dismal disaster. Jumbled, poorly written, confusing, with a "twist" that undid much of the emotional arc of the original trilogy.

Still, Disney had plans to incorporate "Star Wars" into their theme parks, starting with their Galaxy's Edge additions, and then a massive, immersive project called the Galactic Starcruiser. A combination hotel and live-action role-playing game, with promises of futuristic transportation within the hotel directly to Galaxy's Edge. 

It opened in March 2022. And closed in September 2022. Whoops. And after all this time, we finally know what's coming next.

Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World. (Photo by Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Disney Replacing Star Wars Hotel With Not Much

Instead of an ambitious, extremely themed hotel project, the Galactic Starcruiser property will now be turned into…office space.

The Wrap reported on Thursday that, per their sources, Disney is going to use the space for Walt Disney Imagineering staff.

"According to several sources, including an individual close to the company," the article reads, "the building that formerly housed the immersive adventure (located near Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World) is being converted into offices for Walt Disney Imagineering, the secretive arm of the company responsible for theme park attractions, retail locations and cruise ships."

What a disaster. 

Disney spent hundreds of millions of dollars to build its "Star Wars" hotel, it stayed open for six months, and now it's being converted to office space. Complete mess.

This is the epitome of what modern Disney has become. It misunderstood what guests liked about the "Harry Potter" themed lands at Universal, and thought it could recreate it with "Star Wars." 

But those two properties couldn't be more different. In tone, in world, in the ease of making interactive content. Most people don't want to spend thousands of dollars per stay to feel like they're in "Star Wars." But they do like seeing their kids happy after buying a $50 wand that allows them to interact with objects around Diagon Alley.

They should have known better, and they should have had a better plan for what to do afterwards. They didn't, and now it's yet another embarrassment for a company that's had more than its fair share of them.