Disney has a long history of developing theme park experiences with legendary filmmaker George Lucas. During their partnership, they created attractions unique to Disney that redefined theme park experiences. These include the 3-D musical adventure Captain EO starring music icon Michael Jackson and Academy Award-winning actress Anjelica Huston, the groundbreaking flight simulator ride Star Tours, and the innovative Indiana Jones Adventure.
Well before the development of these attractions, Disney Legend Tony Baxter, George Lucas, and a crew of Imagineers were reimagining a Tomorrowland that would place guests in a futuristic metropolis with environments inspired by Star Wars in a multi-level venue called LucasPort. If created, it would have revitalized Disneyland’s Tomorrowland.
A Blend of Futurism and Science Fiction
LucasPort was conceived as a brand new area contained within a mixed-use glass superstructure that would include an interactive Star Wars-themed high-speed adventure, the original location for the ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter, shops and dining locations. The land would also have integrated existing attractions, like the Monorail and Peoplemover, into the new structure as part of Tomorrowland’s new towering skyline.
A New Centerpiece: Taking Tomorrowland to New Heights
Located in the heart of Tomorrowland, LucasPort would be housed within a crystal-shaped glass superstructure where guests could take different paths through futuristic vistas and elevated walkways to new attractions.
LucasPort would take over the America Sings venue, turning the revolving theater into a collection of portals designed to look like a futuristic space station. At the time of development, America Sings – an animatronic staged show that told the history of America through music – occupied the building that is currently the Star Wars Launch Bay, and previously housed General Electric’s Carousel of Progress.
To enhance the innovative setting, the Rocket Jets would be moved into an interior location surrounded by glass walls on a second level to give “astronauts” breathtaking views high above Tomorrowland.
Star Wars High-Speed Adventure
The marquee attraction would have been a ground-breaking, immersive Star Wars roller coaster that would give guests control over how the journey would unfold.
The adventure would begin on the planet Dagobah, where Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi would lift your vehicle with the Force and position it into a unique launch system. After leaving Dagobah, guests would be approached by Stormtroopers, circle AT-AT Walkers, zoom by a fight between Darth Vader and a Jedi, escape perilous near-misses with meteorites and experience a close encounter with the destruction of the Death Star.
During the adventure, there would be three points strategically placed along the track where guests could choose to either participate in a dog fight with the Empire (which would launch guests into a looping section of the track) or flee (which would result in entering a family-friendly section).
The ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter
Very little is known about Alien Encounter during this period of development. It was originally designed for Disneyland and was also included for the proposed Tomorrowland 2055 project as part of the “Disney Decade” Michael Eisner had promised. In 1995, the attraction landed in Disney World’s recently redeveloped Tomorrowland and was installed in the space that previously housed the Mission to Mars attraction.
Reconfiguring Tomorrowland
Due to the limited amount of space at Disneyland available for redevelopment, acquiring an area large enough to construct new show buildings would require the removal of many of the existing landmarks, as well as moving portions of the Monorail and the PeopleMover to new locations.
To create enough space to fit the show building for the Star Wars attraction, the Disneyland Railroad’s path would be rerouted closer to the Submarine Lagoon before reconnecting it to the entrance of the Grand Canyon dioramas. The new area would be flanked with new rockwork and a pedestrian path around an expanded lagoon.
To give guests access from LucasPort to attraction boarding areas in the new show buildings, elevated walkways would be constructed behind the berm on multiple levels, which would be located above the Monorail’s new path and backstage areas.
The Future That Never Was
Unfortunately, due to the scope and size of the project, LucasPort never made its way to Disneyland. Factors, such as the size of the Star Wars attraction building and the cost of demolition and materials were deemed too expensive. In spite of LucasPort not being fully realized, one can appreciate the research and development that went into designing ambitious attractions never before seen at a Disney theme park.
Since that time, Tomorrowland has received several updates and new attractions that have been both celebrated and controversial.
Post LucasPort: Imagination and Beyond
In 1998, Tomorrowland received an update that was branded “Imagination and Beyond.” Inspired by the steampunk retrofuture of Disney Paris’ Discoveryland, the area would be transformed from an optimistic utopia to a land representing the vision of a future from a bygone era – a future far removed from LucasPort.
Due to a very limited budget that was mandated by Paul Pressler, the chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts during that time, the Imagineers were left with the daunting task of redeveloping the area on a shoestring budget. Unfortunately, the final version offered fewer attractions than its previous iteration. The area has since been restored to its original mid-century color palette of white and silver and most of the Tomorrowland ’98 attractions have since been removed or replaced.
Opportunity Knocks!
Special comeback rates are now available at some of your favorite Anaheim hotels and are discounted up to $100 off their regular nightly rates.
Our travel partners at Get Away Today are here to help you with your theme park shutdown concerns and rescheduling plans. We know you’re as uncertain about the future as we are. That’s why Get Away Today is offering the most flexible Disney travel options available:
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Give your family something to look forward to:
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Let’s Hear From You!
Tomorrowland has had many different incarnations, some that made it into existence and some did not. Would you have liked to have experienced LucasPort? Would it have stood the test of time? Which version of Disneyland’s Tomorrowland over the decades stands out as the most inspired vision to you and what would you like to see for the future of the land? Let us know in the comments below.
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