At the SXSW, there were several Star Wars announcements made that fans who visit the Disney Parks have reasons to be excited about. More details about The Mandalorian and Grogu update for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run were revealed. This included new destinations and the opening date that coincides with the movie’s release date. There also was some news made about the future of the BDX droids.
These BDX droids first appeared at Disneyland in the fall of 2023. Since then, they returned to Disneyland’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge during Season of the Force last year and then appeared at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event.
They will soon be going on more adventures around the world and beyond! During The Future of World-Building at Disney panel at SXSW, it was revealed that these little free-standing and personality-filled droids will be appearing in The Mandalorian and Grogu. They won’t just be appearing on the silver screen, though. They will soon be heading to Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris as they venture on a trip around the world. Photos of the droids in the world of The Mandalorian and Grogu were shared during the panel:
These droids are really quite incredible. To bring them to life, they learn how to walk and interact via a virtual simulator. They then learn to walk physically and each has its own distinct personality and name. The whole process really is incredible and was shown to Daps Magic on a visit to Walt Disney Imagineering in 2024.
In a cute little part of the panel, Imagineering showed how these droids are “maintained.” This was an in-world look at how this was done. Another BDX droid came on stage with an Anzellan named Otto on top of it, working on its head apparently. Otto was very vocal and had his own personality that he brought to the stage as well.
For those who want more details from behind the curtains of Imagineering, a new episode of We Call It Imagineering will be released on Monday. This episode will look at the Ride Studio. This is the birthplace of many vehicles seen in the SXSW presentation that is in a space that is dedicated to design and engineering.
Are you excited about what the future has in store for these BDX droids? Have you gotten to see them in person before? What do you think of them? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
