General

Tube Thursday: Why “CSI” doesn’t air on ABC

Published

14 years ago

September 23, 2010

Given that CSI kicks off its 11^th season on CBS
tonight and given that Michael Eisner’s new book, “Working Together: Why Great
Partnerships Succeed,” was released to stores earlier this month, it’s almost
inevitable that some entertainment reporter out there is going to connect the
dots. Use tonight’s premiere (which features an appearance by tween heartthrob
Justin Bieber ) as an excuse to trot out that tired old saw. You know, how
Eisner supposedly said “No” to “CSI” ? Which is how The Walt Disney Company
missed out on cashing in on what is allegedly the most lucrative TV property in
history.

The only problem with this story is that it isn’t entirely
true. Oh, sure. Michael did play a part in Mickey passing on “CSI: Crime Scene
Investigation.” But as it happens, there were a number of other people who
worked for the Mouse at this same time who also had a hand in this huge missed
opportunity.

So how did this all go down?
As James B. Stewart revealed in his terrific 2005 tome, “DisneyWar,” the
Summer of 1999 wasn’t a particularly happy time for those who worked in
television at Disney.
You see, Mickey had just merged Walt Disney Television Studio with ABC
Entertainment. And to be honest, the executives who had previously been in
charge of these business units (i.e. Lloyd Braun, formerly the Chairman of Walt
Disney Television Studio, and Stuart Bloomberg, formerly the Chairman of ABC
Entertainment) were now jockeying for power to see who might emerge as top dog of
the newly formed ABC Entertainment Television Group.

So …

…
A few weeks after the merger of ABC and (WDTS), Steve McPherson, Braun’s former
deputy, now head of Touchstone (Television), set up a meeting with (Jamie) Tarses
(the president of ABC Television) and
executives in ABC’s drama department to pitch a new crime drama that producer
Jerry Bruckheimer, with Joe Roth’s encouragement, had developed for Touchstone.
The idea was a fresh spin on the tried-and-true police drama: a series about a forensic
team in Las Vegas that gathers evidence for police forces and prosecutors … called
“CSI: Crime Scene Investigators.”

Now you have to understand that Bruckheimer was (and is)
Walt Disney Studio’s most successful producer. More to the point, that “CSI”
had the backing of Roth, Braun and McPherson. Which should have made this show
a shoo-in for ABC’s Fall 2000 line-up. But then inexplicably Tarses and the
head of Drama at the Alphabet Network passed on this program.

So what went wrong? There are two schools of thought here.
One is that Anthony Zuiker, the longtime Las Vegas resident who created “CSI:
Crime Scene Investigation,” just came on too strong during his pitch to Tarses
& the network’s Head of Drama. That Jamie et al were put off by Anthony’s
hyper-kinetic behavior in that meeting.

“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation”
creator Anthony Zuiker

The other school of thought is that Bloomberg told Tarses to
pass on “CSI” so that he could then send a message to Braun. Make him realize
that they wouldn’t be bowing to corporate pressure. That – as the Heads of ABC
Entertainment – Stuart & Jamie would be deciding which shows should air on
the Alphabet Network. Not Lloyd.

Contrast this with what happened when Bruckheimer &
Zuiker took “CSI” to CBS. Executives there were so enthusiastic about Anthony’s
pitch that – even though CBS had already closed its development slate for the
2000 – 2001 television season – they still ordered up a pilot for “CSI: Crime
Scene Investigation.”

Mind you, The Walt Disney Company could have still been the production
company behind CSI. Which would have eventually translated into huge profits
for the Mouse once this crime drama went into syndication. The only problem is
– given that TV dramas cost so much to produce – they rarely if ever turn a
profit during their initial network runs.

And since Bloomberg, Tarses and their team at the ABC
Television Entertainment Group didn’t think enough of “CSI: Crime Scene
Investigation” to order that pilot be made for this proposed crime drama,
Disney executives were having trouble wrapping their heads around the idea that they were now expected to go into the hole
(production costs-wise) to help launch this same show on CBS.

In a Fall 1999 meeting with Steve McPherson, Bob Iger allegedly
asked “What’s the (projected production) deficit per episode on ‘CSI’ ?.”
McPherson explained it would be about a million dollars. “We can’t do that,”
Iger supposedly said. “Michael won’t understand how we can spend a million
dollars a show to (help) subsidize CBS.”

With Bob now insisting that – strictly for cost-savings
reasons – Disney pass up the opportunity to co-produce “CSI” with Bruckheimer,
Braun and McPherson demanded a meeting with Eisner. Arguing that – if Disney
pulled out of this crime drama now that CBS
had committed to shooting a “CSI” pilot – this would then make it extremely
difficult for ABC Entertainment Television Group to sell its TV shows to the other networks.

But as Stewart explained:

…
the “CSI” situation seemed to bring out his competitive instinct to inflict
failure on a rival. In the final meeting, Eisner said that he didn’t care if
“CSI” was a hit if it were on a network other than ABC. He also warned that
Bruckheimer was a profligate spender, and the deficits would probably be a lot
more than one million per episode. Besides, he didn’t think CBS would be
willing to pick up the production costs, and if Disney pulled out, the show
would die, creating a hole in the CBS line-up. Braun was ordered to call Bruckheimer
and pull the plug.

The
unflappable Bruckheimer took the news calmly. He was disappointed but gracious.
But Eisner and Iger underestimated his determination, and that of Les Moonves,
the head of CBS. Instead of dropping “CSI,” as they had anticipated, CBS lined
up another producer, Alliance Atlantis Communications, which presold some
foreign rights to raise $800,000 per episode, an amount that nearly covered the
projected deficit. CBS financed the rest, minimizing the potential loss. CBS placed
“CSI” as the centerpiece of its Friday night schedule for fall 2000.

So when you get right down to it, it wasn’t just one guy
(i.e. Michael Eisner) making a bad decision that ultimately caused The Walt
Disney Company to miss out on “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.” Truth be told,
Eisner, Bob Iger, Stuart Bloomberg and
Jamie Tarses all share the blame. With each of them making smaller individual
decisions that eventually resulted in “CSI: Las Vegas” and its two spin-offs,
“CSI: NY” and “CSI: Miami” making bajillions of dollars for CBS.

But you have to ask yourself: if Disney had been smart
enough to hang onto “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” would the Imagineers have
then used this super-popular TV franchise as the inspiration for a theme park
attraction?

Which – I know – sounds somewhat unlikely. Given “CSI” ‘s
grisly subject matter and all. But that wouldn’t necessarily have been a deal
breaker with Disney and WDI.

Seriously. Do you remember back in the mid-to-late 1990s
when Disney’s Dimension Films’ division was releasing those “Scream” movies?
While this trio of slasher films were making beaucoup bucks at the box office,
the Imagineers took a long and hard look at building a thrill ride for Disney’s
Hollywood Studios that was to have starred Ghostface. One that was to have
featured the same trackless ride system technology that’s used to such great
effect in Tokyo Disneyland’s Pooh’s Hunny Hunt. But in the end, Michael Eisner
just couldn’t see his way clear to okaying construction of a slasher-themed
attraction for a Disney theme park. So – in the end – the development budget
for DHS’s “Scream” ride was (ironically enough) slashed.

Getting back to “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” now: What
would a theme park attraction built around this popular TV franchise have been
like? Well, I’d have to imagine that it would have been a lot like “CSI: The
Experience!” which opened at the MGM
Grand back in September of 2009.

Now as you might expect, “CSI: The Experience!” deals with
some pretty graphic subject matter. Which is why this relatively new Las Vegas
attraction is recommended for ages 12 and up. But this interactive experience
places you right in the middle of the world of “CSI.” Just like the stars of
the TV show, you have to deal with multiple mysteries (to be specific, three
murders that involve 15 different suspects). And you then have to use the lab
stations within this exhibit to examine bullet casings and match DNA to
potential suspects. You’ll even be asked to identify the source of a single
strand of hair.

As you make your way through two state-of-the-art forensic
crime labs, you’ll be guided via video by the stars of the “CSI” TV show.
You’ll also hear from real-life forensic scientists, who’ll walk you through
the processes & procedures that you’ll need to master if you’re to become a
successful crime scene investigator.

It’s typically takes MGM Grand visitors an hour to 90
minutes to get all the way through “CSI:
The Experience!” But given what you’ll see (plus that CSI diploma that you’ll
be awarded at the end of experience), I can guarantee that the time that you
spend in this faux forensic lab will stay with you for years yet to come.

“CSI: The Experience!” is open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Tickets for the last tour are sold at 9 p.m., but “CSI: The Experience” always
stays open ’til 10 p.m. so that MGM Grand visitors can complete their
experience.

Photo courtesy of EMS Exhibits Inc.

And speaking of tickets … If you’d like to save on admission
for “CSI: The Experience!,” might I suggest that you drop by the Best of Vegas
website. Which is currently offered discounted tickets to this
MGM-Grand-in-the-Studio-Walk attraction.

For further information on this offer, please click this
link.

Your thoughts?

General

Seward Johnson bronzes add a surreal, artistic touch to NYC’s Garment District

Published

9 years ago

June 23, 2015

Jim Hill

Greetings from NYC. Nancy and I drove down from New
Hampshire yesterday because we'll be checking out
Disney Consumer Products' annual Holiday Showcase later today.

Anyway … After checking into our hotel (i.e., The Paul.
Which is located down in NYC's NoMad district), we decided to grab some dinner.
Which is how we wound up at the Melt Shop.

Photo by Jim Hill

Which is this restaurant that only sells grilled cheese sandwiches.
This comfort food was delicious, but kind of on the heavy side.

Photo by Jim Hill

Which is why — given that it was a beautiful summer night
— we'd then try and walk off our meals. We started our stroll down by the Empire
State Building
…

Photo by Jim Hill

… and eventually wound up just below Times
Square (right behind where the Waterford Crystal Times Square New
Year's Eve Ball is kept).

Photo by Jim Hill

But you know what we discovered en route? Right in the heart
of Manhattan's Garment District
along Broadway between 36th and 41st? This incredibly cool series of life-like
and life-sized sculptures that Seward
Johnson has created.

Photo by Jim Hill

And — yes — that is Abraham Lincoln (who seems to have
slipped out of WDW's Hall of Presidents when no one was looking and is now
leading tourists around Times Square). These 18 painted
bronze pieces (which were just installed late this past Sunday night / early
Monday morning) range from the surreal to the all-too-real.

Photo by Jim Hill

Some of these pieces look like typical New Yorkers. Like the
business woman planning out her day …

Photo by Jim Hill

… the postman delivering the mail …

Photo by Jim Hill

… the hot dog vendor working at his cart …

Photo by Jim Hill

… the street musician playing for tourists …

Photo by Jim Hill

Not to mention the tourists themselves.

Photo by Jim Hill

But right alongside the bronze businessmen …

Photo by Jim Hill

… and the tired grandmother hauling her groceries home …

Photo by Jim Hill

… there were also statues representing people who were
from out-of-town …

Photo by Jim Hill

… or — for that matter — out-of-time.

Photo by Jim Hill

These were the Seward Johnson pieces that genuinely beguiled. Famous impressionist paintings brought to life in three dimensions.

Note the out-of-period water bottle that some tourist left
behind. Photo by Jim Hill

Some of them so lifelike that you actually had to pause for
a moment (especially as day gave way to night in the city) and say to yourself
"Is that one of the bronzes? Or just someone pretending to be one of these
bronzes?"

Mind you, for those of you who aren't big fans of the
impressionists …

Photo by Jim Hill

… there's also an array of American icons. Among them
Marilyn Monroe …

Photo by Jim Hill

… and that farmer couple from Grant Wood's "American
Gothic."

Photo by Jim Hill

But for those of you who know your NYC history, it's hard to
beat that piece which recreates Alfred Eisenstaedt's famous photograph of V-J Day in Times Square.

Photo by Jim Hill

By the way, a 25-foot-tall version of this particular Seward
Johnson piece ( which — FYI — is entitled "Embracing Peace") will actually
be placed in Times Square for a few days on or around August 14th to commemorate the 70th
anniversary of Victory Over Japan Day (V-J Day).

Photo by Jim Hill

By the way, if you'd like to check these Seward Johnson bronzes in
person (which — it should be noted — are part of the part of the Garment
District Alliance's new public art offering) — you'd best schedule a trip to
the City sometime over the next three months. For these pieces will only be on
display now through September 15th.

General

Wondering what you should “Boldly Go” see at the movies next year? The 2015 Licensing Expo offers you some clues

Published

9 years ago

June 10, 2015

Jim Hill

Greeting from the 2015 Licensing Expo, which is being held
at the Mandalay Bay
Convention Center in Las
Vegas.

Photo by Jim Hill

I have to admit that I enjoy covering the Licensing Expo.
Mostly becomes it allows bloggers & entertainment writers like myself to
get a peek over the horizon. Scope out some of the major motion pictures &
TV shows that today's vertically integrated entertainment conglomerates
(Remember when these companies used to be called movie studios?) will be
sending our way over the next two years or so.

Photo by Jim Hill

Take — for example — all of "The Secret Life of
Pets" banners that greeted Expo attendees as they made their way to the
show floor today. I actually got to see some footage from this new Illumination
Entertainment production (which will hit theaters on July 8, 2016) the last time I was in Vegas. Which
was for CinemaCon back in April. And the five or so minutes of film that I viewed
suggested that "The Secret Life of Pets" will be a really funny
animated feature.

Photo by Jim Hill

Mind you, Universal Pictures wanted to make sure that Expo
attendees remembered that there was another Illumination Entertainment production
coming-to-a-theater-near-them before "The Secret Life of Pets" (And
that's "Minions," the "Despicable Me" prequel. Which
premieres at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival next week but
won't be screened stateside 'til July 10th of this year). Which is why they had
three minions who were made entirely out of LEGOS loitering out in the lobby.

Photo by Jim Hill

And Warner Bros. — because they wanted "Batman v
Superman: Dawn of Justice" to start trending on Twitter today — brought
the Batmobile to Las Vegas.

Photo by Jim Hill

Not to mention full-sized macquettes of Batman, Superman and
Wonder Woman. Just so conventioneers could then see what these DC superheroes
would actually look like in this eagerly anticipated, March 25, 2016 release.

Photo by Jim Hill

That's the thing that can sometimes be a wee bit frustrating
about the Licensing Expo. It's all about delayed gratification. You'll come
around a corner and see this 100 foot-long ad for "The Peanuts Movie"
and think "Hey, that looks great. I want to see that Blue Sky Studios production
right now." It's only then that you notice the fine print and realize that
"The Peanuts Movie" doesn't actually open in theaters 'til November
6th of this year.

Photo by Jim Hill

And fan of Blue Sky's "Ice Age" film franchise are in for an even
longer wait. Given that the latest installment in that top grossing series
doesn't arrive in theaters 'til July
15, 2016.

Photo by Jim Hill

Of course, if you're one of those people who needs immediate
gratification when it comes to your entertainment, there was stuff like that to
be found at this year's Licensing Expo. Take — for example — how the WWE
booth was actually shaped like a wrestling ring. Which — I'm guessing — meant
that if the executives of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. didn't like
the offer that you were making, they were then allowed to toss you out over the
top rope, Royal Rumble-style.

Photo by Jim Hill

I also have to admit that — as a longtime Star Trek fan —
it was cool to see the enormous Starship Enterprise that hung in place over the
CBS booth. Not to mention getting a glimpse of the official Star Trek 50th
Anniversary logo.

Photo by Jim Hill

I was also pleased to see lots of activity in The Jim Henson
Company booth. Which suggests that JHC has actually finally carved out a
post-Muppets identity for itself.

Photo by Jim Hill

Likewise for all of us who were getting a little concerned
about DreamWorks Animation (what with all the layoffs & write-downs &
projects that were put into turnaround or outright cancelled last year), it was
nice to see that booth bustling.

Photo by Jim Hill

Every so often, you'd come across some people who were
promoting a movie that you weren't entirely sure that you actually wanted to
see (EX: "Angry Birds," which Sony Pictures Entertainment / Columbia
Pictures will be releasing to theaters on May 20, 2016). But then you remembered that Clay Kaytis —
who's this hugely talented former Walt Disney Animation Studios animator — is
riding herd on "Angry Birds" with Fergal Reilly. And you'd think
"Well, if Clay's working on 'Angry Birds,' I'm sure this animated feature
will turn out fine."

Photo by Jim Hill

Mind you, there were reminders at this year's Licensing Expo
of great animated features that we're never going to get to see now. I still
can't believe — especially after that brilliant proof-of-concept footage
popped up online last year — that Sony execs decided not to go forward
with production of Genndy Tartakovsky's
"Popeye" movie. But that's the
cruel thing about the entertainment business, folks. It will sometime break
your heart.

Photo by Jim Hill

And make no mistake about this. The Licensing Expo is all
about business. That point was clearly driven home at this year's show when —
as you walked through the doors of the Mandalay
Bay Convention Center
— the first thing that you saw was the Hasbros Booth. Which was this gleaming,
sleek two story-tall affair full of people who were negotiating deals &
signing contracts for all of the would-be summer blockbusters that have already
announced release dates for 2019 & beyond.

Photo by Jim Hill

"But what about The Walt Disney Company?," you
ask. "Weren't they represented on the show floor at this year's Licensing
Expo?" Not really, not. I mean, sure. There were a few companies there hyping
Disney-related products. Take — for example — the Disney Wikkeez people.

Photo by Jim Hill

I'm assuming that some Disney Consumer Products exec is
hoping that Wikkeez will eventually become the new Tsum Tsum. But to be blunt,
these little hard plastic figures don't seem to have the same huggable charm
that those stackable plush do. But I've been wrong before. So let's see what
happens with Disney Wikkeez once they start showing up on the shelves of the
Company's North American retail partners.

Photo by Jim Hill

And speaking of Disney's retail partners … They were
meeting with Mouse House executives behind closed doors one floor down from the
official show floor for this year's Licensing Expo.

Photo by Jim Hill

And the theme for this year's invitation-only Disney shindig? "Timeless
Stories" involving the Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm brands that
would then appeal to "tomorrow's consumer."

Photo by Jim Hill

And just to sort of hammer home the idea that Disney is no
longer the Company which cornered the market when it comes to little girls
(i.e., its Disney Princess and Disney Fairies franchises), check out this
wall-sized Star Wars-related image that DCP put up just outside of one of its
many private meeting rooms. "See?," this carefully crafted photo
screams. "It isn't just little boys who want to wield the Force. Little
girls also want to grow up and be Lords of the Sith."

Photo by Jim Hill

One final, kind-of-ironic note: According to this banner,
Paramount Pictures will be releasing a movie called "Amusement Park"
to theaters sometime in 2017.

Photo by Jim Hill

Well, given all the "Blackfish" -related issues
that have been dogged SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment over the past two years, I'm
just hoping that they'll still be in the amusement park business come 2017.

Your thoughts?

General

It takes more than three circles to craft a Classic version of Mickey Mouse

Published

9 years ago

June 9, 2015

Jim Hill

You know what Mickey Mouse looks like, right? Little guy,
big ears?

Truth be told, Disney's corporate symbol has a lot of
different looks. If Mickey's interacting with Guests at Disneyland
Park (especially this summer, when
the Happiest Place on Earth
is celebrating its 60th anniversary), he looks & dresses like this.

Or when he's appearing in one of those Emmy Award-winning shorts that Disney
Television Animation has produced (EX: "Bronco Busted," which debuts
on the Disney Channel tonight at 8 p.m. ET / PT), Mickey is drawn in a such a
way that he looks hip, cool, edgy & retro all at the same time.

Looking ahead to 2017 now, when Disney Junior rolls out "Mickey and the
Roadster Racers," this brand-new animated series will feature a sportier version
of Disney's corporate symbol. One that Mouse House managers hope will persuade
preschool boys to more fully embrace this now 86 year-old character.

That's what most people don't realize about the Mouse. The
Walt Disney Company deliberately tailors Mickey's look, even his style of
movement, depending on what sort of project / production he's appearing in.

Take — for example — Disney
California Adventure
Park's "World of Color:
Celebrate!" Because Disney's main mouse would be co-hosting this new
nighttime lagoon show with ace emcee Neil Patrick Harris, Eric Goldberg really had
to step up Mickey's game. Which is why this master Disney animator created
several minutes of all-new Mouse animation which then showed that Mickey was
just as skilled a showman as Neil was.

Better yet, let's take a look at what the folks at Avalanche Studios just went
through as they attempted to create a Classic version of Mickey & Minnie.
One that would then allow this popular pair to become part of Disney Infinity
3.0.

"I won't lie to you. We were under a lot of pressure to
get the look of this particular version of Mickey — he's called Red Pants
Mickey around here — just right," said Jeff Bunker, the VP of Art
Development at Avalanche Studios, during a recent phone interview. "When
we brought Sorcerer Mickey into Disney Infinity 1.0 back in January of 2014,
that one was relatively easy because … Well, everyone knows what Mickey Mouse
looked like when he appeared in 'Fantasia.' "

"But this time around, we were being asked to design
THE Mickey & Minnie," Bunker continued. "And given that these Classic
Disney characters have been around in various different forms for the better
part of the last century … Well, which look was the right look?"

Which is why Jeff and his team at Avalanche Studios began watching hours &
hours of Mickey Mouse shorts. As they tried to get a handle on which look would
work best for these characters in Disney Infinity 3.0.

"And we went all the way back to the very start of Mickey's career. We began
with 'Steamboat Willie' and then watched all of those black & white Mickey shorts
that Walt made back in the late 1920s & early 1930s. From there, we
transitioned to his Technicolor shorts. Which is when Mickey went from being
this pie-eyed, really feisty character to more of a well-behaved leading
man," Bunker recalled. "We then finished out our Mouse marathon by
watching all of those new Mickey shorts that Paul Rudish & his team have
been creating for Disney Television Animation. Those cartoons really recapture
a lot of the spirit and wild slapstick fun that Mickey's early, black &
white shorts had."

But given that the specific assignment that Avalanche Studios had been handed
was to create the most appealing looking, likeable version of Mickey Mouse
possible … In the end, Jeff and his team wound up borrowing bits & pieces
from a lot of different versions of the world's most famous mouse. So that
Classic Mickey would then look & move in a way that best fit the sort of
gameplay which people would soon be able to experience with Disney Infinity
3.0.

"That — in a lot of ways — was actually the toughest
part of the Classic Mickey design project. You have to remember that one of the
key creative conceits of Disney Infinity
is that all the characters which appear in this game are toys," Bunker
stated. "Okay. So they're beautifully detailed, highly stylized toy
versions of beloved Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm characters. But
they're still supposed to be toys. So our Classic versions of Mickey &
Minnie have the same sort of thickness & sturdiness to them that toys have.
So that they'll then be able to fit right in with all of the rest of the
characters that Avalanche Studios had previously designed for Disney Infinity."

And then there was the matter of coming up with just the
right pose for Classic Mickey & Minnie. Which — to hear Jeff tell the
story — involved input from a lot of Disney upper management.

"Everyone within the Company seemed to have an opinion
about how Mickey & Minnie should be posed. More to the point, if you Google
Mickey, you then discover that there are literally thousands of poses out there
for these two. Though — truth be told — a lot of those kind of play off the
way Mickey poses when he's being Disney's corporate symbol," Bunker said.
"But what I was most concerned about was that Mickey's pose had to work
with Minnie's pose. Because we were bringing the Classic versions of these
characters up into Disney Infinity 3.0 at the exact same time. And we wanted to
make sure — especially for those fans who like to put their Disney Infinity
figures on display — that Mickey's pose would then complement Minnie.

Which is why Jeff & the crew at Avalanche Studios
decided — when it came to Classic Mickey & Minnie's pose — that they
should go all the way back to the beginning. Which is why these two Disney icons
are sculpted in such a way that it almost seems as though you're witnessing the
very first time Mickey set eyes on Minnie.

"And what was really great about that was — as soon as
we began showing people within the Company this pose — everyone at Disney
quickly got on board with the idea. I mean, the Classic Mickey that we sculpted
for Disney Infinity 3.0 is clearly a very playful, spunky character. But at the
same time, he's obviously got eyes for Minnie," Bunker concluded. "So
in the end, we were able to come up with Classic versions of these characters
that will work well within the creative confines of Disney Infinity 3.0 but at
the same time please those Disney fans who just collect these figures because
they like the way the Disney Infinity characters look."

So now that this particular design project is over, does
Jeff regret that Mouse House upper management was so hands-on when it came to
making sure that the Classic versions of Mickey & Minnie were specifically
tailored to fit the look & style of gameplay found in Disney Infinity 3.0?

"To be blunt, we go through this every time we add a new character to the
game. The folks at Lucasfilm were just as hands-on when we were designing the
versions of Darth Vader and Yoda that will also soon be appearing in Disney
Infinity 3.0," Bunker laughed. "So in the end, if the character's
creators AND the fans are happy, then I'm happy."

This article was originally posted on the Huffington Post's Entertainment page on Tuesday, June 9, 2015