Discover 'Star Wars': Galaxy's Edge—a new land at Walt Disney World Resort and the Disneyland Resort, where you can live out your own 'Star Wars' story, fly the Millennium Falcon and explore a remote outpost where adventure awaits.

. Editor’s note: Following the publication of this article, it was announced that will open ahead of schedule on May 31 at in Southern California and August 29 at in Florida. , the bustling hub of, will be filled with a galaxy of strange beings and places to visit — as revealed to StarWars.com and select media in a special preview with its creators, and a site tour last week at California’s.Among the characters coming to the Star Wars-themed land is a certain Weequay, making the jump from animation to the real world. Hondo Ohnaka, as he appeared in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.Hondo Ohnaka, the shady, fan-favorite pirate from the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, has been brought to life as one of Disney Parks’ most complex Audio-Animatronics figures ever created.

You’ll find him waiting in the control tower of a Black Spire Outpost spaceport in the attraction Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run; he’s teamed up with Chewbacca and needs you to transport some cargo on the iconic bucket of bolts.Seeing Hondo in person — with his red leather jacket, scaly Weequay skin, and over-exaggerated gestures — is almost surreal. Jim Cummings has returned to voice the smuggler, and his dialogue is everything it should be: funny and demonstrative, gregarious yet selfish. “Remember,” he tells guests in the queue. “The more you work together, the more you earn. Your lives — and my profit — depend on it!”For a generation that grew up with the character, having him physically exist in our galaxy should be quite special. “One of the things that we aimed for is finding the opportunities to honor all levels of fandom, whatever part of the galaxy they’ve participated in, and he became a great choice as someone to meet here on Black Spire,” said Carrie Beck, vice president, animation and live action series at Lucasfilm. Dave Filoni, supervising director of The Clone Wars, advised on the inclusion of Hondo and what his story might be at Galaxy’s Edge.

“Additionally, I think the opportunity to bring a character from animation into real life was something that we’ve never done before, and I think it was really exciting to all of us to think about the opportunity that exists.”Previsualization — building characters or scenes with 3D graphics — was employed to model Hondo and other characters’ animations, which allowed for fast improvements, and motion capture was used to create more organic movements. This was all enabled, however, because of a major shift in how Imagineers are approaching their Audio-Animatronics technology.

“We are able to do more previsualization in this project because we’ve shifted towards electric figures,” said Victoria Thomas, associate show mechanical engineer at Walt Disney Imagineering. Traditional animatronics are hydraulics-based, she explained, starting with the 1964 World’s Fair Abraham Lincoln, Imagineering’s first Audio-Animatronics human figure, all the way to today. “This project team came together and said, ‘Okay, how do we create the latest and greatest kit figure?’” They went back and forth, landing on electric; this guaranteed a higher-quality performance, longer-lasting life, and the use of digital techniques, like previsualization. Hondo, however, is just one of the many faces, both familiar and new, at Galaxy’s Edge. Concept art of Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities, home of rare Jedi artifacts and more. (Disney Parks)You’ll also meet Dok-Ondar, an animatronic Ithorian who runs the black market on — though he’s already popped up in other Star Wars stories, including a mention in Solo: A Star Wars Story.

In Black Spire Outpost, you’ll find his shop, Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities, which promises to be filled with treasures ranging from holocrons to ancient Jedi stone carvings. If you’re shrewd, he may even barter with you. “We just fell in love with him from the beginning,” Margaret Kerrison, managing story editor at Walt Disney Imagineering said, but noted that he’s still a scoundrel. “He’s very well-connected, and he’s a very dangerous guy.”. The Toydarian Toymaker stall will feature an assortment of artisan-style plush characters, wood and tin toys, and musical instruments. (David Roark/Disney Parks)Zabaka, a female Toydarian, runs a shop featuring artisan-style items: There are wooden Convor whistles, musical instruments (that are playable and come pre-loaded with tunes), and plushies of aliens and galactic heroes. The Creature Stall, owned by Bina, will offer oinking puffer pigs, writhing rathtars, and chirping porgs.

Black Spire Outfitters will provide all your galactic apparel needs, from First Order uniforms to Jedi attire. Concept art of the Droid Depot. (Disney Parks)You’ll even be able to build your own lightsabers and droids at Savi’s Workshop and the Droid Depot, respectively.

“Everything was created through the lens of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge,” said Brad Schoeneberg, director, merchandise strategy and new park experience development at Walt Disney World Resort. “The product that you leave with is the one that you’ve designed based on the choices that you’ve made, and reflects the one that really is inherent to your Star Wars adventure.” In a clever in-universe detail, packaging will either fit with the story of the store, or be non-existent.

After all, Luke Skywalker built his lightsaber — it didn’t come in a box. And the story continues: your lightsaber will contain a kyber crystal that contains a message that can only be unlocked when paired with a holocron; your droid will know a lot about Black Spire Outpost, and can react to your experiences.If you’ve ever been on the original Star Tours, you’re in for a reunion of sorts.

R-3X, or Rex, the first Star Tours captain, has a new gig in Black Spire Outpost: he’s the DJ in Oga’s Cantina, the locale’s watering hole. In our sneak peek at Rex, he bopped his head charmingly to the music, which sounded like what could only be called Jawa hip hop.Lucasfilm’s Matt Martin, a longtime Disney Parks fan, especially enjoyed contributing to Rex’s story. “Being able to dig into what his story is, and thinking about how he traveled from Star Tours and ended up on Batuu, has really been one of the joys of working on this project,” he said. Martin already had a backstory written for Rex, and passed it along as soon as he learned that the hapless droid was back. Paul Reubens provided the original voice of Rex, and while his return was not confirmed, it’s safe to say that upon hearing the droid’s new chatter, the Rex faithful will be pleased.And specially-dressed employees, also known as Disney Cast Members, will roam Black Spire Outpost. You’ll be able to speak with, and learn from these villagers, all with different stories to tell. Some might be Resistance sympathizers; some might be First Order loyalists.

So choose your words wisely depending on your allegiance.These characters and locales will become part of your own Star Wars story when Galaxy’s Edge opens this summer at Disneyland Resort and in the fall at Walt Disney World Resort. Better practice your galactic good manners.Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens in California’s in summer 2019, and in Florida’s in fall 2019.See more of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in StarWars.com’s.Dan Brooks is Lucasfilm’s senior content strategist of online, the editor of StarWars.com, and a writer. He loves Star Wars, ELO, and the New York Rangers, Jets, and Yankees. Follow him on Twitter where he rants about all these things.TAGS:.

Merchandise available in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida and Disneyland Park in California plays a vital role in the overall storytelling within the land. The Disney Parks product development team was integrated with the overall project team throughout the creation of the land to ensure the retail program delivers an immersive, authentic and connected Star Warsexperience.

Unique merchandise expands the fun of playing in this land, allowing guests to live their own Star Warsadventures through new story-driven retail experiences, role-play products and environments. Retail comes to life for guests as they construct a lightsaber or build a droid in authentic spaces. The products deliver a level of authenticity, realism and storytelling that can only be achieved at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Savi’s Workshop – Handbuilt Lightsabers

• Guests can customize their own legendary lightsabers as they choose their paths in this immersive retail experience.
• A group known as the Gatherers ushers guests into a covert workshop packed with unusual parts and whimsical pieces collected from the far reaches of the galaxy. Under the Gatherers’ guidance, guests construct one-of-a-kind lightsabers and bring them to life through the power of kyber crystals.
• Guests select from the following lightsaber themes:
  • Peace and Justice– Utilize salvaged scraps of fallen Jedi temples and crashed starships in Republic-era lightsaber designs that honor the galaxy’s former guardians.
  • Power and Control– Originally forged by warriors from the dark side, objects used in this lightsaber style are rumored remnants from the Sith home world and abandoned temples.
  • Elemental Nature– Craft a lightsaber from special components born from the Force, such as Brylark trees, Cartusion whale bones or Rancor teeth.
  • Protection and Defense– Incorporate hilt materials bearing mysterious motifs and inscriptions that reconnect a lightsaber’s wielder with the ancient wellspring of the Force.

Droid Depot

• Building a droid is a guest experience offered at the Droid Depot. For this custom astromech adventure, guests enter a workshop stocked with stacks of parts, chips and manuals to construct their own droids, some of the galaxy’s most indispensable sidekicks.
• In this immersive retail experience, guests construct either the BB-series or R-series astromech.
• Droid parts come and go on conveyor belts as guests make choices to construct their own units.
• Once built, guests place their droids in an activation station to bring them to life, allowing the droids to be operated via remote control.*
• Droids can be further customized with personality-affiliation chips, color panels and other accessories.
• Once activated, droids may interact with other astromech droids and with certain other Bluetooth-enabled elements and devices throughout Black Spire Outpost.*
• In addition, Droid Depot offers prebuilt droids, housewares and apparel, all inspired by the design, engineering and building of droids:
  • Premium Droid Action Figures– Featuring R2-D2, BB-8, DJ R-3X and C-3PO, these hero-scale droids are loaded with interactive functionality. DJ R-3X is both a fully functional remote-control droid and Bluetooth-enabled speaker, with classic DJ sound effects.
  • Color Changing Droids Figure Packs and Play Set– Built to classic 3 ¾ scale, these droids are ready for an undercover mission in Black Spire Outpost.
  • Droid Light-Up R2-D2 or BB-8 Headbands– No droid part goes unused, as these motion-activated dome headbands inspired by favorite Star Warscharacters respond with lights and sound.
  • Droid Depot Work Shirts and Apparel– Available for droid fans of all ages.

Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities

• Guests can shop for mysterious and unique galactic artifacts collected by Dok-Ondar, a legendary antiquities dealer who is asmysterious as many of the objects he collects. The Ithorian’s den is packed with racks and crates of items with their own stories to tell:
  • Legacy Lightsabers– This elegant weapon from a more civilized age is most commonly associated with the Jedi and Sith. Dok-Ondar has collected replicas of some of the most famous – or infamous – warriors in the galaxy’s history, including Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Maul.
  • Lightsaber Accessories– Lightsaber clips, carrier bags and display stands are used to carry or display a lightsaber when not in use.
  • Kyber Crystals– At the heart of every lightsaber is a kyber crystal. This crystal is attuned to the Force. Colors include blue, green, purple, red, yellow and white.
  • Holocrons– The Jedi and Sith have curated enormous amounts of information about the galaxy and the Force. Holocrons store this valuable data, which when paired with kyber crystals can be unlocked and accessed by the owner of these rare artifacts.

Creature Stall

• At this exotic marketplace stall, guests will discover creatures and critters from across the galaxy. While Bina, the stall’s proprietor, is out traversing the galaxy for more exotic creatures to bring into her stall, her assistants keep this storefront stocked with unique companions for customers who may want to take one home, including:
  • Kowakian Monkey-Lizard– This cackling, rambunctious creature comes in multiple colors and can sit on a shoulder.
  • Porg– This small, flat-muzzled, naturally inquisitive avian creature hails from the cliffs of secluded Ahch-To. Watch as it chirps and flaps its wings.
  • Loth-cat– A member of the tooka family and native to Lothal, this feline is a small, temperamental creature. While at times friendly, it is still a capable hunter with sharp teeth.

Black Spire Outfitters

• At this colorful apparel shop, guests can find outfits for a galactic adventure, selecting from stylish, functional clothing suitable for many occasions and worlds:
  • Robes– Inspired by those worn by Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, these are available in both brown and black, and are sized for all.
  • Tunics– Often worn under robes, these are available in both neutral and black, sized for all.
  • Belts– Available in a variety of styles and colors and sized from youth through adult, these are the perfect accessories for wearing a lightsaber hilt.

Toydarian Toymaker

• In this whimsical shop, guests may browse for handcrafted toys and collectibles from the busy toymaker, Zabaka the Toydarian:
  • Artisan Plush Characters– Famous icons of the galaxy are brought to life through stylized plush, including Yoda, Chewbacca, Ewoks and many more.
  • Games– With fun for all ages, shoppers can choose from Cards of Sabacc, Dejarik, Chance Cubes and more.
  • Vehicles– Famous vessels of the galaxy are crafted in materials such as wood and metal.

Jewels of Bith

• A must-stop destination for local goods and tiny treasures, this shop offers a wide variety of souvenirs and gifts for tourists wishing to commemorate a visit to Batuu:
  • Batuuan Cooling Fan – Stay cool on hot days with this hand-held fan inspired by the moisture vaporators of Tatooine.
  • Gifts of Batuu and Black Spire Outpost– Apparel and drinkware featuring the sights and graphics of this remote planet and its most heavily populated village.

First Order Cargo

• The First Order recently arrived in Black Spire Outpost and established a post to win the hearts and minds of locals and visitors alike. Guests can show their support by purchasing clothing and more:
  • Accessories– First Order-branded caps, pins, patches and other gear.
  • First Order Short-Range Evacuation Vehicle Play Set– This vehicle play set features a fleet transport and First Order R5-series astromech droid. Authentic detail, lights and sounds bring the Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance attraction to life in toy form.

Resistance SupplyTeam sonic racing release date.

• Members of the Resistance set up a secret makeshift post where guests can join the cause to defeat the First Order by stocking up on essential gear and supplies to prepare for their next mission:
  • Accessories– Resistance-branded caps, pins, patches and other gear.
  • Toys and Vehicles– Models and metal replicas of the Resistance fleet.
  • Resistance MRE (Meals Ready to Eat)– On-the-go snacks for Resistance fighters.

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*A droid will interact with various Bluetooth-enabled elements as it is carried around Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, but using a remote-control device to operate a droid while at the theme parks will be prohibited.