Chaim Gartenberg wrote about Disney making a not-a-real-one-but-still-retractable-and-awesome lightsaber for Wired yesterday.
To whom it may concern at The Walt Disney Company and / or Lucasfilm:
Show me the damn lightsaber. I know you have a real one now. And it’s time to fess up.
There’s plenty of evidence that a better toy saber has been on Disney’s mind for a while. The company’s current crop of replica props and customized Galaxy’s Edge sabers are already hugely popular, to start.
To be clear, whatever Disney has, it isn’t a real lightsaber like in the movies. People have tried to make those for years and ultimately, it isn’t possible due to the amount of energy and the danger involved. Gotta leave that with the Star Wars franchise, I’m afraid.
But if you wanna look at a cool lightsaber made from plasma (that requires “a massive power pack and is almost certainly not safe to sell as a children’s toy at a theme park”), check out the one below.
Update: Here it is: Disney’s ‘real’ lightsaber.