Disney admits billion-dollar mistake by bringing back ‘Star Wars’ characters

Just a few years ago, the Walt Disney Company was proudly announcing and opening its “Star Wars”-themed lands at many parks across the country.

Disney invested billions of dollars in the design and production of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, which is based on a fictional world called “Batuu.” They highlighted technology and immersive elements to enhance the guest experience and allow fans to spend hours at Galaxy’s Edge. Return again and again to build experience points by interacting with scenes and characters.

“Batuu” is specifically set in the world of the newest trilogy, led by characters like Rey and Kylo Ren. This was all thanks to advice from Lucasfilm’s then-chairman Kathleen Kennedy to then-Disney CEO Bob Iger.

RELATED: Kathleen Kennedy Blames ‘Star Wars’ Fans for Disliking Her Bad Movies

And now, after just a few years of operation, new leadership at the top is completely changing the entire plot behind Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. In this process, they admitted that they completely missed the target with their multibillion-dollar projects.

Star Wars Lands Brings Back Original Characters

A former senior executive at Walt Disney World explained in an interview why Galaxy’s Edge focuses on the new trilogy and not on the beloved original films and characters. Because Kathleen Kennedy gave Bob Iger terrible advice.

“We got a call one day,” said former WDW Vice President Dan Cockerell. “‘We’ve got some news for y’all,’ they said. And Imagineers have heard that phrase many times throughout their careers. And I’ve never experienced it.” “They said yesterday, ‘Bob Iger met with Kathleen Kennedy, who, as many people know, is a protégé of George Lucas and is the head of Lucasfilm. And they had a conversation. They had a meeting. And from Kathleen Kennedy’s point of view, we’ve got a lot more Disney Star Wars stories ahead of us than behind us. So we have to think about whether we really want to build a Tatooine, and whether we want to build what everyone in their fifties remembers Star Wars for. The future will know the new stories.” Build something else that will appeal to generations.'”

Kennedy said don’t focus the plot on characters people love, but instead focus on new movies. And Iger listened. These new movies have come and gone, and “Star Wars” has never been more relevant in the national conversation. Of course, under new CEO Josh D’Amaro, Disney announced this month that they would be bringing Han Solo, Princess Leia, and Luke Skywalker to Galaxy’s Edge, eventually including John Williams’ beloved score from the original films.

That’s how you know when you listen to Kathleen Kennedy that they admit they made a big mistake.

Bringing these characters to Galaxy’s Edge makes no logical or thematic sense, especially since they’re depicted as their younger selves from the original trilogy. But Disney is desperate to make its huge investment in Galaxy’s Edge worth it, so it’s hoping that characters people really love will bring in new fans and keep them there longer.

Park visitors walk near the entrance to the Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run ride during a preview of the Star Wars-themed Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios at Disney World. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

This is a series of unforced errors. They made mostly forgotten mediocre movies, assumed people cared about Rey and Kylo Ren or Fin or Poe Dameron, and then bet billions of dollars that their new stories would be more popular than their old ones. They were wrong about all this. The new films have none of the depth, complexity, charm or flashy excitement of the original characters. Because Kathleen Kennedy was involved in their creation. They haven’t released a new “main trilogy” Star Wars movie in years, and they’re not close to doing so.

Now they have to undo those mistakes without spending billions of dollars to rebuild the land. What a disaster. And even more frustrating, it is predictable and preventable.