39 Years Ago Today, Star Wars Got Its Most Exciting Update in Years (And It’s More Important Than You Realize)

After 1983’s Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, the most popular franchise in the galaxy had a problem: the story was over, but the fanbase was just as ravenous as ever for new material. The implication that there were still stories to tell before “Episode IV” and potentially after “Episode VI” kept many interested and eager for more stories; the best anyone got were the TV movies Caravan of Courage and The Battle for Endor (plus the animated Droids and Ewoks). Luckily for especially nerdy readers, Marvel Comics continued to publish new Star Wars adventures in the years after that film, not only telling stories that happened between the movies but eventually going beyond them.

Eventually, though, a surprise new chapter in Star Wars was created that not only satisfied the need for more stories in the franchise but pushed the series beyond the events of Return of the Jedi. Though it wasn’t as easily accessible as a movie was at the theater or a video rental store, and came with the need for admission to a theme park, Star Wars got its coolest new chapter in years on this very day, 38 years ago, when none other than Star Tours opened at Disneyland. The importance of Star Tours goes deeper than that, though, and it may be more important than you even realize.

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Star Tours Marked the First New Star Wars Material From George Lucas in Years

After previously working together for the “Captain EO” attraction, Disney went to George Lucas in the mid-1980s to see if he would be interested in bringing Star Wars to their theme parks. Not only did Lucas agree to the idea, but he also worked with his team at Lucasfilm to create the actual visuals that appeared on screen for the Star Tours ride. For Star Wars fans, this marked the first time in years that Lucas-approved and involved material in the series was created, giving it much more credence and weight than other materials.

In the context of the ride, you’re put aboard a ship via the “Star Tours” travel agency with a trip booked to view the Forest Moon of Endor from Return of the Jedi. The ship is piloted by a new droid, RX-24, voiced by Pee-wee himself, Paul Reubens, who takes riders through a slew of iconic Star Wars moments, including a jump to lightspeed, traversal through a comet cluster, and eventually an encounter with Imperial ships, including a new Death Star. Naturally, the pre-ride queue also features major Star Wars references and Easter eggs, with none other than C-3PO and R2-D2 appearing, with Chewbacca, Ewoks, and Mon Calamari all appearing in the safety video.

Upon its opening, Star Tours was an immediate hit and resulted in a very rare endeavor by Disneyland, which stayed open for sixty hours straight to meet the demand of fans eager to enjoy the ride. The popularity of the ride would continue for decades after its debut, expanding from Disneyland to both Hollywood Studios in Orlando (Disney–MGM Studios Theme Park at the time), Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Park Paris. Star Wars as a franchise would also cement the place of Star Tours in the canon, too, with animated shows like Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels making reference to it in major ways.

Star Tours Helped Pave the Way for Modern Star Wars

The development and execution of the Star Tours ride paved the way for further collaborations between Lucas and Disney with the Indiana Jones franchise at the parks and more. In 2005, it was confirmed that Star Tours would be getting a major revamp, with the ride changing every time it was ridden and over 54 different story combinations possible, including different planets and characters from the franchise that would appear. This updated version would open in May of 2011, and on the same day that it opened, a meeting was held between George Lucas and Bob Iger, the CEO of The Walt Disney Company.

This breakfast meeting is where it’s reported Iger first asked Lucas how he might feel about selling Lucasfilm, something that the filmmaker said he was open to talking about. This eventually began the long process of what was confirmed about eighteen months later, on October 30, 2012, when Disney announced it was buying Lucasfilm for $4 billion and putting into development a slew of brand new Star Wars movies.

This isn’t to say that you should pin all of your love and hate for anything that is “Disney Star Wars” solely on the fact that 38 years ago Star Tours opened at the theme park; however, it can not be understated that the success of the partnership with Disney and George Lucas on Star Tours had a lasting impression on both parties and eventually lead to where the franchise stands today. That’s why Star Tours is so important in the grand scheme of Star Wars. At one point, it was the first new piece of material for the series in years, but it’s also the first brick in the road to the modern era of the franchise.