Josh D’Amaro on Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run — “Guests Like It, But They Don’t Love It”
Since the moment that Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was announced in August 2015, guests eagerly looked forward to Disney’s promised Millennium Falcon ride.
For decades, Star Wars fans had dreamed of entering the most iconic ship in the galaxy far, far away and setting off on a high-speed adventure.
Photo: Disney
It was no surprise, then, that the Millennium Falcon served as the most recognizable sight in Galaxy’s Edge. Needless to say, the attraction housed inside seemed like a natural fit.
Smugglers Run
To make guests feel like they were flying aboard the Millennium Falcon, Walt Disney Imagineering eventually came up with the idea for Smugglers Run.
Photo: Disney
The attraction would not only allow fans to ride in the Falcon but also to actually control the ship on a daring mission. The success or failure of the quest depended on how well guests played their roles.
The Attraction Was Flawed
When Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge finally opened in 2019, it became clear that Smugglers Run had some inherent problems.
Photo: ScreenCrush
Perhaps the biggest complaint was that the pilot role was much better than the gunner and engineer positions.
While pilots have the opportunity to fly the Falcon, the other roles were relegated to simply hitting the occasional button.
Additionally, as the experience of Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run depends on how well guests fulfill their duties, having an inexperienced pilot, especially a young child, often derails the experience.
Enter the Mandalorian and Grogu
Although Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run has proven to be a fairly popular attraction over the last six-plus years, Disney knew it needed upgrades.
Last year, the company announced that a new Mandalorian & Grogu experience would be added to the attraction alongside other updates such as new destinations, choose-your-own-adventure missions, and improvements to the Gunner and Engineer roles.
Josh D’Amaro Was Instrumental in the Updates
A new report from the Harvard Business Review reveals that Josh D’Amaro, who will soon assume the Disney CEO position, was instrumental in the update.
“Guests like it,” Josh said, “but they don’t love it.”
Eventually, D’Amaro and Imagineers came up with a solution that would allow every guest who rides the attraction to actively participate in the adventure.
“Disney is a delicate brand,” D’Amaro said. “Anything I can do to help more guests say they love Disney is a valuable use of my time.”
