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View Full Version : Star Tours - what would it cost?



Ivanova
05-25-2002, 11:30 AM
What would it cost to change Star Tours? All they would have to do is create a new film & reprogram the ride. No new construction required. And the bulk of the work could be done off-line so that the ride will be down for a relatively short period of time.

So what's stopping them? Money? George Lucas (as in he's got better things to do)?

merlinjones
05-25-2002, 12:04 PM
Here's a great idea: Lucas should buy the DL Resort from Disney (giving them liscence fees like OLC). Then the Walt Disney admirer could properly restore Walt's historic park and attractions and tear down DCA to build a full Star Wars park across the esplanade. Talk about minting money with that double whammy...!

cstephens
05-25-2002, 03:34 PM
Originally posted by merlinjones
Here's a great idea: Lucas should buy the DL Resort from Disney (giving them liscence fees like OLC). Then the Walt Disney admirer could properly restore Walt's historic park and attractions and tear down DCA to build a full Star Wars park across the esplanade. Talk about minting money with that double whammy...!

In all of the interviews I've ever read, he's never expressed an interest in owning or operating a theme park. Too much bureaucracy, I'd imagine, and he doesn't even like the bureaucracy he's dealing with now, even though it's of his own building.

And I think a Star Wars park would be a disaster - much too limited a theme to be of interest to enough people to make it worthwhile.

SoCalDisneyLover
05-25-2002, 11:04 PM
And I think a Star Wars park would be a disaster - much too limited a theme to be of interest to enough people to make it worthwhile.

Kind of like a park themed after California....In California no less. :-)

Seriously...I've also wondered why they have not updated this ride. Is there a serious feud going on between Disney & Lucas? I'm assuming of course that Disney has a desire to do something with Star Tours. Does Lucas want $, and D not wanting to pay? Does Lucas have refusal rights on changes to Star Tours in perpetuity(forever)? They could certainly breathe Some life into Tommorowland by updating this attraction. Unless the cost or rehab involved would be too prohibitive. Does anybody else have an opinion on this? An estimate of chances something could/might be done to ST by next year?

Nigel2
05-25-2002, 11:11 PM
It probably is cost prohibative since Lucas might not want to deal with disney anymore for some reason. Plus it isn't as simple as just poping in a new film and program since it takes a long time to make a new film for it, and then to do the motion and testing would take a while. Also they would probably have to re-do the interiors of the cars to at least clean them up and all the people they would have to hire to work on this means more money going into a ride and they don't seem too keen on this at the moment.

Disney Nick
05-25-2002, 11:18 PM
It seems to me like it is more of Disneyland not wanting to put the money into it. I'm sure Lucas really wouldn't be opposed to update the attraction with something that could help promote the release of the 3 New Star Wars, especially with the new one coming in 3 years. Nigel is right... there is a lot more than simply fixing the film. If Disney is actually going to do it, they should go all out and redo the whole queue which is kinda outdated, as well as redoing the cars themselves. Personally, I'd really like to see a new attraction, but I'm not holding my breath. If they don't update it soon, I fear this attraction may soon be gone...

merlinjones
05-26-2002, 12:40 AM
Even better yet - - close Star Tours and rebuild Walt's Adventure Thru Inner Space with modern effects!

cstephens
05-26-2002, 02:52 AM
Originally posted by SoCalDisneyLover
Kind of like a park themed after California....In California no less. :-)

I used to think that too when I first heard about DCA, but that was before I knew anything about the park. Once I visited it for the first time, though, I changed my mind.


Seriously...I've also wondered why they have not updated this ride. Is there a serious feud going on between Disney & Lucas?

Most people seem to assume that there's a problem between Lucas and Disney. Whether or not that's true, most people also tend to overlook the most obvious reason - Lucas is very busy, and changing a theme park attraction isn't at the top of his list of things to do, and it's not like ILM is hurting for work. Disney can't make changes to Star Tours without Lucas' approval. And really, he doesn't need an updated Star Tours to promote a Star Wars film. A new film in Star Tours isn't going to prompt people to see a new film in the theatres.

I really can't see there being a change to Star Tours until after Episode III is open. And then he's going to be very busy working on the DVDs for Eps. IV through VI, so who knows.

DisneyFreak2000
05-26-2002, 06:11 AM
Originally posted by SoCalDisneyLover


Kind of like a park themed after California....In California no less. :-)

Would you rather have a park themed after Florida in California? It's not that bad of a park. It barely even sticks to the California theme, I mean it has a good structure. Now they just need to fill it in with quality entertainment and rides.

merlinjones
05-26-2002, 07:23 AM
>>It's not that bad of a park. It barely even sticks to the California theme, I mean it has a good structure. Now they just need to fill it in with quality entertainment and rides.<<

:D Quite an endorsement... That should be their ad copy!

(Although I disagree about the structure... can you say ugly?)

MonorailMan
05-26-2002, 08:45 AM
When did this turn into a DCA bashing thread???

I still like Star Tours, I say keep it as it is. :)

cstephens
05-26-2002, 08:46 AM
Originally posted by merlinjones
(Although I disagree about the structure... can you say ugly?)

Yes I can, but I don't see what that has to do with DCA. I think it's a beautiful park.


Originally posted by MonorailMan
When did this turn into a DCA bashing thread???


Many threads end up being turned into DCA bashing threads, unfortunately.

DLfreak
05-26-2002, 09:51 AM
I actually read several months back (maybe even a couple years ago) that Lucas offered to pay out of his own pocket the money to make a new movie for it. But his condition was that Disney upgraded the technology of the ride and Disney didn't want to pay the money to do that. :(

Disney Nick
05-26-2002, 10:03 AM
<< I actually read several months back (maybe even a couple years ago) that Lucas offered to pay out of his own pocket the money to make a new movie for it. But his condition was that Disney upgraded the technology of the ride and Disney didn't want to pay the money to do that. >>

This seems more like the truth to me. Lucas is not a money-hungry person like Eisner and Pressler. I'm sure he would have no trouble doing it right now... he won't even start working on Episode III for another year...

hefferdude
05-26-2002, 11:27 AM
Sprucing up the interior of the of the shuttles and
remastering the film and soundtrack would be a
a worthwile start.

But with all this prequel stuff, after episode III,
won't we be back to the beginning anyway? :D

I want creative rights #3:
How about ST offers one of its shuttle bays as a
ride on an AT-AT or an AT-ST. ( You know, the big
four legged imperial walkers or even the smaller
chicken walkers.
Then the guests take a wild walk/ride
on another panetscape with lots of surprises! :eek:

coronamouseman
05-26-2002, 11:50 AM
There are probably at least 3 things that only Disney and Mr. Lucas are privy to that would affect an upgrade of Star Tours:

(1) Licensing arrangement for the "Star Wars" brand for this attraction - does Disney have any say on this or is the attraction under partial or even full control by Mr. Lucas? This would also include the ride technology as this ride may have been created by Mr. Lucas' group and thus Disney has no rights to that technology.
One would think not since there are spinoffs of both Star Tours (Body Wars) and Indy (Dinosaur) at WDW which use the same technology. Can Disney make any changes themselves or must they get approval from Mr. Lucas?

(2) What is the present state of affairs regarding Mr. Lucas and Disney (this perhaps goes directly to Mr. Eisner)? Is it lukewarm, smoldering or perhaps disinterested (by both parties) at this point? Does either party care to make any changes at this point or does one wish to and the other not?

(3) What is the commitment level of Mr. Lucas to building more rides for Disney (or anybody else for that matter?) As was stated in this thread before, he is putting a lot of energy and effort into his "minting" process of releasing the next (few) Star Wars movies. Who knows, perhaps he went back to the movies because his experiences with Disney were enough to turn him off from the theme park business (we hope not!) Remember, Alien Encounter as it was originally planned was ultimately torpedoed by Disney in favor of the current version (no ties to the "Alien" movie franchise).

So there is probably a lot more to this situation than most any of us might know ..........

cstephens
05-26-2002, 10:26 PM
Originally posted by NMoreles
This seems more like the truth to me. Lucas is not a money-hungry person like Eisner and Pressler. I'm sure he would have no trouble doing it right now... he won't even start working on Episode III for another year...

Actually, that's not true. Episode III starts shooting next year, but there's a lot that needs to go into pre-production, especially for a Star Wars film. There's also the small matter that he has to write the screenplay for it.

As far as whether or not Lucas is "money-hungry" - he's not a saint either. As much as I like and respect him, he's still a businessman.

Nigel2
05-26-2002, 10:36 PM
He is also a control freak, look at the rules he put of for when episode one came out.

mrfantasmic
05-26-2002, 10:40 PM
Yes, it has seemed that Rex is caught in a time bubble and every flight is his first. Faithful Disneylanders have watched Star Tours age for the years it has been open.
However, we can't seem to get an upgrade scheduled for the ride!
Here's the reason:
George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars Galaxy, is extraordinarily busy. It's not like he just takes a break in between movies. In fact, he travels around the world promoting the movie until time comes for the new film.
Lucas has already said that due to the gargantuan amount of time and energy it takes to make the Second Trilogy, the First Trilogy will not be released on DVD until 2005 or later (Episode III is scheduled for theatres in Summer 2005).
A lot of work also goes into creating a DVD. Archives must be searched, clips must be sorted, Industrial Light and Magic, Skywalker Sound, and THX have to go back and digitize the entire movie. Since the movies were made in the Late 70's early 80's, there's a lot of work involved. Multiply that by three and you have one hell of a job.
Lucas himself has expressed desire to upgrade the ride extensively, and, yes, Disney has been eager for something to get rolling. However, the recent release of The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and the upcoming release of Episode III, and the Original Star Wars Trilogy on DVD should postpone this project until after the 2005 50 Years Celebration.

Ivanova
05-26-2002, 10:43 PM
Well ain't that just a pooper - a Star Tours re-do would give us a new "e-ticket" ride without the cost of building a new ride from scratch.

Not counting DCA, what's the last big time ride introduced at DLR? Indiana Jones??

AliKzam
05-26-2002, 10:44 PM
I'm just going to throw some things out here:
*"Pearl Harbor" was supposed to be Industrial Light & Magic free, but the (imagineers? director?) insisted on using them. The Disney Corp. wanted to show that they didn't need ILM to have killer special effects. That did not happen with this film.
*At one point in time (earlier this year), wasn't it said Lucas was trying to lure Pixar away from Disney?
*It seems to me there may be a little monopoly envy going on. In other words, Lucas is the only one you should really go to for special effects, or so it seems. If you can't handle that, and say you happen to have an attraction in your theme parks that is a result of a former arrangement you had, the trickle effect may happen in a negative way.
*Star Tours is like a bus tours/airline type ride a la Star Wars. If they intend to keep that theme, I don't think they would have to change it too much. Maybe add a couple features to the line, and add a couple more films (Tatooine and Hoth, like they promised).
*If they want to update the technology, great. But since the ride is supposed to take place after the films have reached their happy ending, I don't think they'd need to change the plot too drastically. Just maybe acknowledge a few things from the first (present) three films. Have the airport/spaceport on Corruscant, with maybe a window to the outside city (A speeder could pass by, you could see into the windows of people's apartments-- it could be a constant thing full of running gags). Instead of just calling the ships Starspeeders, name them like cruiseliners are named. The S.S. Amidala, The S.S.Windu, The S.S. Palpatine (S.S.- "Star Speeder").
It could be fun!

Nigel2
05-26-2002, 10:48 PM
Originally posted by Ivanova
Well ain't that just a pooper - a Star Tours re-do would give us a new "e-ticket" ride without the cost of building a new ride from scratch.

Not counting DCA, what's the last big time ride introduced at DLR? Indiana Jones??

Not totally true, they may decide that they will change the cars size or just replace them, plus the costs may still be comparable to a ride from scratch since they may want to change some things.

Oh and the last big ride was rocket rods.:)

Disney Nick
05-26-2002, 11:01 PM
Oh and the last big ride was rocket rods.

Let's not even get started on this....

I agree with the rest of your post though. There would be a lot more costs involved than just changing the movie.

Nigel2
05-26-2002, 11:15 PM
Well rocket rods was the last big expensive thrill ride, it just didn't last because it didn't work.:D