A record-breaking 70,000 plus Star Wars fans from around the world celebrated the franchise's 40th anniversary during Star Wars Celebration 2017 in Orlando.
A record-breaking 70,000-plus Star Wars fans from around the world celebrated the franchise's 40th anniversary during Star Wars Celebration 2017 in Orlando. It was the biggest and most widely-attended Star Wars Celebration in its history, bringing together the biggest names across the saga like Mark Hamill and Hayden Christensen plus surprise guests George Lucas and Harrison Ford.
Utilizing more than 1 million square feet of exhibition space across the West building of the Orange County Convention Center, Orlando offered fans plenty of room to meet, greet and dance with their favorite characters.
And being in the No. 1 family destination in the world, multiple generations of fans young and old came out to Orlando to experience a truly one-of-a-kind event from Princess Leia and Jabba the Hut and a larger-than-life TIE Fighter to Jedi Training and Stormtrooper fandom.
But the highlight of the week was seeing their favorite celebrities on stage and hearing their first-hand stories of what it was like to be a part of the Star Wars cultural phenomena. Special surprise guests George Lucas and Harrison Ford, plus John Williams joining the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra for a surprise mini-concert wowed the audience at the “40 Years of Star Wars” special panel, which included a touching tribute to Carrie Fisher. Fans also were the first to see the much anticipated trailer of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Episode VIII of the series that hits theaters in December 2017.
Fans praised Orlando across social media for it’s great weather, easy walkability, and prime location saying “Orlando is the perfect place since Star Wars is everywhere” with Disney’s new Galactic nights at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and home to the incredible new Star Wars-themed land scheduled to open in 2019. Thanks Lucasfilm and ReedPOP for an amazing show. We hope to see you again in 2019!
For more highlights, check out the recap video by LucasFilms.
