Step Aboard Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run

By Jim Frye

With the opening of the epic new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland Park on May 31, 2019, (August 29, 2019, at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida), the “fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy” is primed and ready to take guests on the biggest adventure of their lives! Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run puts you right in the middle of the action with interactive gameplay that makes you the star of your own Star Wars adventure in a more immersive way than ever before.

Lovingly described at various times as a “piece of junk” or “bucket of bolts,” the Millennium Falcon is the most famous of all the ships in the Star Wars universe. On Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, guests 38 inches or taller climb aboard the Falcon in all her ramshackle glory and settle into the cockpit where they discover the ship still has a few surprises left in her.

Following the events of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Chewbacca brought the Falcon to Black Spire Outpost for repairs at this spaceport on the edge of the galaxy. In exchange for some much-needed replacement parts, Chewie is loaning the Falcon to Hondo Ohnaka, a smuggler who is now making good use of the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs. It is at this point that guests enter the story of Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run.

Here are few helpful facts to help get you into the story of this brand-new adventure.

Who is Hondo Ohnaka, and What Does He Want?
He’s a fan-favorite character from the Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels animated television series. Hondo is a Weequay pirate, running a “legitimate business” called Ohnaka Transport Solutions. He enlists our help to deliver cargo for him, hoping that we won’t ask too many questions.

This is the first time Hondo Ohnaka has been seen outside the animated TV series. Lucasfilm’s Dave Filoni, who created Hondo, consulted with Imagineers to help capture the essence of Hondo’s Audio-Animatronics® figure inside the attraction.

Step Aboard the Falcon
Aboard the Falcon, guests will spend some time in the ship’s main hold and lounge, where they can sit at the famous Dejarik (chess) table. But once inside the cockpit, groups of six will each be assigned one of three critical roles to complete the mission. They’ll either be a pilot, a gunner, or a flight engineer. It’s important that guests work together. If the ship sustains damage, either by hitting obstacles or taking enemy fire, the handling will be affected, and the ship’s hallways will show damage as guests leave the attraction.

You’ll also notice that modifications have been made. For example, Hondo has altered the control sticks for the pilot and co-pilot, and he’s added a harpoon to the Falcon’s weapons, among other tweaks.

Authenticity in the Details
Walt Disney Imagineers worked with Lucasfilm to ensure authenticity in every detail of the Millennium Falcon—down to the hoses, pipes, switches, and even the stickers on the exterior hull. Imagineers pored over archival Lucasfilm photos of the ship, and they visited Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom—where many of the movies were shot—to study Falcon film sets. Rest assured, this IS the Falcon you’ve been wanting to see, and she’s ready for her next adventure. Or in the immortal words of Han Solo: the Millennium Falcon “may not look like much, but she’s got it where it counts.”

Find out more about Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at the links below:

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