Hinting at what was cut at Star Wars

[AuburnJen 777]

https://blogmickey.com/2019/08/imagineering-video-hints-at-third-ride-cut-from-star-wars-galaxys-edge/

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As part of a 35-video series, Walt Disney Imagineering has put out some wonderful behind-the-scenes looks at not only what they do, but how they do it. There are a ton of interesting tidbits sprinkled throughout the series, but one small clip of a ride test caught our attention.

As you might know, we’re getting ready to explore Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge here in Walt Disney World starting August 29th. Cast Member previews have just started in the 14-acre land, and while they put the finishing touches on the land, it might be fun to explore what might have been. Of course, many ideas were thrown around on how Disney could best incorporate the massive Star Wars IP into their parks, ultimately leading to the concept of Batuu. Batuu is a rest stop of sorts on the galactic highway. It was once a vibrant trading port that has now become a bit of an overlooked stop with the advancements of Hyperspace travel. That said, guests will still face some familiar faces and major players from the recent trilogy of Star Wars movies. From flying the Millenium Falcon to escaping the grasp of Kylo Ren, there are two attractions in the land that put you in the middle of the action. But there was almost a third attraction, and that’s what we want to take a look at today.

Thanks to a really quick snippet in the introduction video to the Imagineering in a Box series, we can get a first look at the actual development process for a Bantha ride that was cut from the final product of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. The screenshot below shows a rendering software that looks to show the Bantha ride that was rumored for the land. An even keener eye can notice that the date on the computer and phone system shows that this development was taking place back in August 2015!

As you can see in the short 4-second clip, Imagineers were working on the ride mechanics of the attraction that was said to be an actual walk-around ride before it was cut. Here’s another screenshot showing an Imagineer atop a movable base that simulated the motion seen on the screen of the Bantha.

Here’s the snippet in animated form.

There are certainly a myriad of reasons why an attraction gets cut from the development process, and we’re not sure why this one didn’t make it into Batuu. The Imagineering video series will definitely let you in on the design process a bit, and if there’s one thing to learn, it’s that a lot of ideas get pitched and discarded all the time.

While we think that Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will have a solid lineup come the Rise of the Resistance opening on December 5th at Walt Disney World, it would have been really cool to see guests sitting atop a Bantha, maybe even roaming the streets of Black Spire Outpost.