There are some depressing rumors about Star Wars Weekends going away. Kenny the Pirate made an interesting discovery regarding the May 2016 park schedule, noting that Studios is hosting Extra Magic Hours on Fridays and Sundays in May and that has never been the case in the past. He figures there are two possibilities if the hours remain the same: either SWW is done, or it will be pushed off to start in June or later. I will be monitoring the link to the June park schedule to see when it is updated for 2016. Anyone heard any more about this? If SWW is no more, will your head explode like Alderaan? Discuss...
While waiting in line for a concert during Food & WIne, I talked to a CM who's on the Spaceship Earth night maintenance crew. (That in itself should tell you that what I'm about to say is 100% reliable.) He said that 2016 would be the last year for SWW. Of course, that was a month ago, so plans could have changed. The real question is, will SWW return once Star Wars Land opens? They'll have a whole new group of actors to draw from thanks to all of the new films.
I heard (rumors of course) that we will no longer see Disney Characters as Star Wars Characters. So no Jedi Mickey, no Darth Goofy, etc... As to Star Wars Weekends, why would you need a special weekend when you have an already dedicated land. I would only hope that they have a large number of Character Meet-n-Greets in the new land if they do stop SWW.
On another note... It sounds like the Launch Bay might be open by PixelMania, with the animation class returning focused on the animated Star Wars characters.
Confirmed. No more Star Wars Weekends: "And work begins next year on the 14-acre Star Wars-themed land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. With construction underway, unfortunately, we won’t be able to offer Star Wars Weekends. While Star Wars Weekends has been a great way to enjoy the saga for a few days every year, now the Force will be with Disney’s Hollywood Studios every day."
As sad as that is, I believe they have announced that the Launch Bay at the Studios will open on Dec. 1st.
It looks like @jbwolffiv won't be able to say "Maybe next year" any more. You waited too long, John. They don't really say for sure if the new scene will be added to Star Tours on Dec. 1. It would be cool if it was, but I'm not too thrilled that I'll see that scene every time I ride. (But to be honest, I think I see the Kashyyk scene more often than not.) I'm still iffy for Pixelmania, but if I have to miss this stuff too, I'll really be disappointed.
Yes, they did confirm Launch Bay for Dec. 1st. Its not really clear as to the start date of the other announcements though. I think we will see that scene every time for a few months, but they said it would go into the random rotation after that. We arrive on Dec. 1 and have been planning to hit studios first thing that day. I even booked a FP+ for Star Tours several weeks ago so hopefully we see the new scene. Funny, I almost never get the Kashyyk scene...
I will reserve the saying of, maybe when it returns in 2021! As for the Launch Bay and the new scene, I too have FP+ for Star Tours on Sunday the 6th for 2:10 before the 50's PrimeTime lunch/dinner. I will probably head to the Studios from DAK near noon so i can get a good look at the Launch Bay and an extra ride on Star Tours.
And I just changed my FP+ for Monday the 7th to DHS and Star Tours at 9 am. Will play at the Studios for a while then hit Jock Lindsay's for a drink before heading back to Pop for DME to the airport.
