After a l0t of talk about
prequels and
sequels and the beginning of a
new journey, I thought I'd take a bit of a lighter route with my next Star Wars article. Disney are on the road to May 2015 and Episode 7 will keep us all talking new Star Wars until then. However, Disney dont just have a new Star Wars movie to deliver, they also have a ton of fans to win over. Now more than ever, the future of Star Wars is as exciting as it is scary. For the first time Star Wars is controlled by a massive corporation. For the first time Star Wars is like most of the other movie franchises out there, where bad decisions are made and the potential of too many cooks in the kitchen could jeopardise its success. Disney need to put our minds at rest. They need to show us they love Star Wars as much as we do (like $4.2 billion didn't do that already) and moreso they need to make sure that our Star Wars loving hearts feel full and well looked after. Like it or loathe it, Star Wars fandom quickly became about buying stuff. In the last decade alone the Star Wars brand has been on everything from clothing to mobile gaming, from fast food toys to Christmas ornaments and theres not even been a movie out in nearly ten years! Pretty much anything youd want with Star Wars on it is available but somehow theres still stuff we want from our favourite film franchise and this is where Disney could really deliver. If Disney show us they know how to cater to the Star Wars fans' requirements and throw some goodwill gestures at us to sweeten us to the Lucasfilm/Disney deal a little bit more, well all be ready to embrace the prospect of Episode 7 and beyond a little more, right? Moreso it gives Disney an opportunity to show us they know how to handle what they have with Star Wars. But what is it that we really want from the House of Mouse when it comes to Star Wars?
10. Star Parks
Theres already a Star Wars presence at some of the Disney parks around the world and its been long rumoured that this will be expanded upon, but with the Lucasfilm acquisition, now is the time to go full on. Expanded park space for Star Wars or even opening parks specifically dedicated to Star Wars is something Disney could do to give all of us fans, somewhere we would love to make the jump to light-speed to. Id like to see full-on Star Wars stores at the parks (and on the high street) that deal in all things Star Wars from action figures to limited edition pieces. The Disney/Star Wars brands already have a lot of crossover but this just needs to get even bigger. Additionally, we want more rides. Themed attractions using visuals like Speeder-bikes, At-Ats, and Millennium Falcons; theres so much within the world of Star Wars that the possibilities are literally endless. Tie in the aspects of the annual Celebration events, with the regular tours of props and costumes that go around the world, put it all within a single park area much like the Harry Potter World attractions and Star Wars will really feel like it set up shop at Disney. Throw in a themed restaurant or two and The House of Mouse could literally generate a place that becomes the mecca of all things Star War; it really could be quite amazing.