Disney Shares Behind the Scenes Details on Its NEW Wandering Droids

One of the most popular things to do in Disney parks is meet characters.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disneyland

In Disneyland, character experiences are tons of fun. Although you do have some traditional meet-and-greets, you’ll find a lot of characters just roaming around, especially in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. On any given day, you might bump into Din Djarin and Grogu, Ahsoka, Hera and Chopper, and more. Well, our FAVORITE roaming characters in Batuu just happen to be those adorable new droids Disney Imagineers have been testing. Now, we’ve got even MORE details about them.

First, though, we have to talk about the amazing technology Disney Imagineers have used in creating these droids. These guys recently spent a day free-roaming around Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. They move fluidly and have personalities, and we can’t even imagine how much thought went into creating them. But then again — Disney is always about turning the impossible into the possible, right?

©Disney

The droids were part of a test for free-roaming characters, and well, we think they passed with flying colors. The Disney Imagineers who created them also recently met with Disney CEO Bob Iger and Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Josh D’Amaro to discuss what the “next steps” for the little guys might be.

©Disney

Disney just revealed more details about these adorable little guys. They’re referred to as “legged walking character platform.” The “droids in training” even have a story (of course, they do; this is DISNEY). Imagineers worked with them so they could learn to express emotions. Disney even has technology that can make inexpensive 3D robotic characters very quickly. So we could have whole armies of these sweet droids.

©Disney

It took both engineers and animators to create the droids. The engineers have created an electromechanical system that can walk and move, while animators have to artistically shape the way they move into personalities.

To say these little droids have stolen the hearts of everyone who has seen them is an understatement, but this technology could also be applied to other characters, too, including bigger ones. We can’t wait to see what Disney comes up with next with this technology, and we hope to see more of the droids in Disney Parks in the future.

Stay tuned to DFB for more news!