Destination Endor
Lucas agreed—and ILM was tapped to help build the video that Star Tours would play in front of its ride machines to guide visitors through their adventure. There were a few compromises along the way. Original plans for the ride video were up to a total of 20 minutes, and needed to be cut down to just five. Lucas also wanted to avoid direct conflict in the ride: he wanted Star Tours not to directly be about the military aspects of the franchise, but find an alternative way to weave its story around the Empire-Rebellion conflict. What was planned then, was a relatable protagonist: a ditzy droid driver taking you on a tour of the galaxy, but naturally getting caught up in Star Wars along the way.
At last—and after $32 million, a huge cost but nowhere near what Disney expected to spend on a Black Hole ride—on January 9, 1987, Star Tours opened its door to Earth tourists in Disneyland hoping for a whirlwind visit to the planet Endor… with ads in the attraction’s queue (which featured animatronics of C-3PO and R2-D2 bickering, as well as other droids, to bide the time while guests worked through the four flight simulators) teasing the likes of Hoth, Dagobah, and Tatooine as locales, even if initially there were never actually plans for such additions.
