Disney is not only one of the world's largest entertainment companies, apparently, it is also now a leader in experimental weapons tech, if reports are to be believed. It would seem that during an exclusive press conference, the company showed off a very special look at what outlets are claiming is a working lightsaber. The catch is though, nobody outside the conference has seen it, and Disney is in no rush to show the Star Wars item off.
As Disney continues to invest in Star Wars and it's series of parks, there has been some attention surrounding the company's plans to use the brand in various locations. So, during a press conference specifically for the parks, Josh D'Amaro, Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, made a point to show off some of the technology under development for those attractions.
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Rumors have been circulating that Disney was interested in creating retractable lightsabers for the planned Star Wars hotel. This would allow visitors to play with the sabers in their hotel rooms between visits to the park, and get them excited for the location. The retractable element would also be a big win for the company, as it brings the devices one step closer to their film counterparts.
It is said that, during the press conference, D'Amaro pulled the theoretical lightsaber out of a box and showed it off, simply stating, "It's real." Unfortunately, Disney has been very strict about not releasing any photos or videos of the device, so it is impossible to see it in person without having been at that particular event. That said, if the company is showing this off, it certainly stands to reason that they are interested in integrating the Star Wars tech into their parks at some point, so presumably, it won't be an enigma forever.
The company has filed patents for similar products in the past, with the patent referring to it as "A special effects device for providing an energy sword effect." Though it isn't clear whether this is indeed the same object as described by the patent, it does seem to be in the same spirit of what was shown off at the press conference.
As of right now, there's no word on when these working, retractable lightsabers will be available to the general public, if ever, but hopefully, more news will come out shortly. It seems likely that Disney will have more Star Wars information to reveal when they announce more details about the opening date for the Star Wars hotel.
The Star Wars saga is now available on Disney Plus.
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Source: Collider