Galaxy’s Edge Adds Roaming BD Droids
When Galaxy’s Edge was first announced back in 2015, Disney promised that the Star Wars park in Disneyland would have lifelike droids roaming around Black Spire Outpost. It took a while, but new droids have been spotted walking around the park, in addition to the actors in costume as stormtroopers or more recognizable characters from the films.
Via Entertainment Weekly, Disney Parks posted two Tik Tok videos showing off three BD units moving around the park. The droids look a tiny bit bigger than BD-1 in the Star Wars Jedi videogames (a BD model also had a brief cameo in The Book of Boba Fett and The Mandalorian), but we can forgive that as they still look remarkably cute.
https://www.tiktok.com/@disneyparks/video/7289255270553963822?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7265650055347045921
In the first video, Executive R&D Imagineer Joel Peavy announces that the droids are still in a “playtest” mode before the eventual goal of releasing them into the park full time. Moritz Bächer, Associate Lab Director at Disney Research, spoke about the “secret sauce” that makes them appear so lifelike:
The robots actually learn to imitate artistic motion — that’s the secret sauce to make them work so quickly. They can actually emote and learn to dance. They can get really angry and the eyes turn red. They walk over uneven terrain. They can still balance. They’re really robust.
The second video posted by Disney Parks shows the droids obeying a series of commands.
https://www.tiktok.com/@disneyparks/video/7289450164329188650?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7265650055347045921
Some lucky guests at Galaxy’s Edge got to see the BD droids in person and WDWMagic found a video from @DisneyDan on Twitter/X of the droids walking through a crowd of people.
WOW!!!! NEW DROID characters at Galaxy’s Edge!!
Check out these tiny little guys! What an amazing addition.
Hope they stick around. pic.twitter.com/TSZPmRVvWz
— Disney Dan Becker (@DisneyDan) October 12, 2023
The Walt Disney Imagineering YouTube channel posted a 59-second video showing one of the BD units in testing mode, showing it expertly navigate uneven terrain and keep its balance when bumped into.
Hopefully it’s not too long before we see these BD units appear in Galaxy’s Edge more frequently, along with many other recognizable droid designs. These wonderful creations really help bring the Star Wars experience to life and we can’t wait to see them in person.
Josh is a huge Star Wars fan, who has spent far too much time wondering if any Star Wars character could defeat Thanos with all the Infinity Stones.
