Smugglers Run Ride Updates to The Mandalorian

“This is the way.”

After 18 months in the making, an all-new adventure tied to the release of Star Wars: The Mandalorian & Grogu has made its debut at Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run, a ride at Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

The new mission premiered on May 22, and Walt Disney Imagineers worked with filmmaker Jon Favreau and Lucasfilm President and Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni to bring the adventure to life.

“It started with some conversations with Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau. There were a lot of conversations around the story about how this could tie into the adventures they were creating for the screen, but obviously adapting it to a theme park setting, so it’s a very different medium,” Asa Kalama, executive creative and interactive experiences head at Walt Disney Imagineering, said in an interview with Variety.

Instead of creating only one adventure, you can now choose from three. “Why is it getting smaller?” Karama said. The team worked ambitiously to enhance the interactive experience. The new vehicle allows the crew to join The Mandalorian bounty hunters Din Djarin and Grogu on exciting missions to track down the elusive former Imperial officer across the galaxy. Hondo Ohnaka received information about a suspicious transaction between a former Imperial military officer and a group of pirates on Tatooine. The crew’s mission is to track down three high-value bounties and collect cargo along the way. The pilot still controls the ship and decides whether the ship goes up, down, left or right, and the gunner protects the ship. On the other hand, the role of engineers has improved significantly. They now decide which planet to travel to.

“We don’t have enough time to complete all three (missions), so it’s up to the flight engineers to make the key decision about which of these three planetary destinations they want to visit: Bespin, Coruscant, or Endor,” Karama explained.

On Bespin, the crew chases an Imperial officer through the skies of Cloud City while avoiding freighters and TIE fighters. On Coruscant, the crew must hunt down a Sentinel assault shuttle. And on Endor, the crew navigates the debris field of the second Death Star, tracking Trandoshan pirates hiding among the wreckage.

During the mission, Grogu suddenly appears to check on the crew. The Engineer can do the same thing, and you can ride the Razor Crest to check on him. Each adventure has its own Easter eggs, and it may take several rides to discover them all.

As for which mission Karama will choose, he teased, “I’d probably say Coruscant. It’s beautiful everywhere, but Coruscant is so vibrant. It’s full of energy and there are so many branching points to take. It feels like it’s an iconic setting for a movie.”

Matt Martin, senior creative executive at Lucasfilm, added, “The idea is to be able to go to different locations and give our guests agency of choice. We love what we did initially with the Corellia mission, but giving our guests even more agency was a top priority for us.”

That agency is the biggest change visitors can experience, and how it rides and what happens is really in the hands of the crew. Additionally, no two missions are the same, making it even more appealing for visitors to come back.

Behind the scenes, Unreal Engine’s technology upgrades have enhanced visuals, pushing the boundaries of immersive experiences and further enriching environments.

More importantly, this ride is tied to the release of The Mandalorian and Grogu. For the first time in the park’s history, the movie and ride will be featured at the same time, something that has never been done before.

Michael Serna, executive creative director of Disney Live Entertainment, expressed his excitement about the changes to the attraction.

In addition to ride upgrades, Darth Vader, Princess Leia, Han Solo, and Luke Skywalker will now appear on Galaxy’s Edge. “This is something that will take us years to put together,” Serna said. As with the vehicle, close collaboration with Lucasfilm was required to ensure the fan service was delivered.

“We’re working closely with them to define what fans love about Star Wars stories. These are the stories that are so precious and real to them,” Serna explained. Knowing that changes to the attraction were coming gave Serna’s team an opportunity to rethink what they could do. After Luke Skywalker debuted and created an exciting experience for fans and park visitors, Darth Vader seemed like the logical next step.

Serna elaborated that it’s more than just appearances. There’s a full backstory to what the characters are doing. “Our story is that Darth Vader really came to hunt down Luke Skywalker, and that’s when Leia Organa and Han Solo come, who want to make sure Luke’s okay. So the whole team comes together and… It’s really exciting to see these characters hanging out near the Millennium Falcon, hanging out near the TIE Echelon, and being able to see Darth Vader come to life in your face.”