These are the droids you’re looking for! In honor of May the Fourth on Monday, we’re taking a closer look at the history, development, and future of the fan-favorite Star Wars BDX droids.

Original Inspiration: BD-1 in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019)

The original inspiration for the BDX droids started in a video game.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a 2019 action-adventure game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts. Set five years after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, the story follows Cal Kestis, a Jedi Padawan who becomes a target of the Empire’s Inquisitors.

Along his journey, Cal meets BD-1, a red-and-white BD Explorer droid who quickly becomes his companion. BD-1 helps the player access chests, terminals, and maps, as well as healing them using “Stim Canisters.” One of the main advantages of the BD Explorer droid is how nimble they are through uneven terrain.

BD-1 also appeared in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, the 2023 sequel to Fallen Order. In this game, the player can customize BD-1 with new skins, some based on existing characters like R2-D2.

Though there isn’t a lot of park merchandise themed to BD-1 specifically, Disney did release a wind-up toy and a remote-control droid unit themed to the Cal’s companion in 2023.

First TV Show Appearance: BD-72 in The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian (2022 – 2023)

The first on-screen translation of a BD Explorer droid was in The Book of Boba Fett (2021-2022). The blue-and-white droid, known as BD-72, was one of the many droids owned by Peli Motto, an engineer who managed Hangar 3-5 at the Mos Eisley spaceport on Tatooine.

In The Book of Boba Fett, Din Djarin (the Mandalorian) visited Peli when he received her message about acquiring a new ship for him. BD-72 assisted Din while he assembled his new N-1 Starfighter, such as shining a flashlight where the Mandalorian was currently working.

BD-72 also appeared in Season 3 of The Mandalorian (2023) when Din visited Peli to acquire droid parts.

Development of the BDX Droids (2022 – 2023)

Meanwhile, Disney Imagineering started to experiment with ways to bring a BD-style droid to life, resulting in what we know now as the BDX droids. A patent was first filed in October 2023 for “walking robots,” before unveiling a working prototype at the 2023 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS) in Detroit.

The technology behind the droids was innovative, as Disney taught the droids how to interact with people on their own, without a human controlling them. First, a human operator “performs” the droid’s behavior. Then, an AI model is trained to copy those behaviors so the droid can do them automatically.

The result is a droid that can express recognizable emotions and perform more autonomously with guests. The technology was also successfully translated to other types of walking robots, opening the door for reusability in future projects.

In a We Call It Imagineering episode, Disney Imagineering showcased the BDX droids in more depth and how they can navigate uneven terrain.

The engineering and design behind the BDX droids were so impressive that Disney received a Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) Thea Award for how the droids were able to offer expressive character interactions with guests at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

The droids would end up taking about a year from initial concept to their first park appearance.

Disney Park and Disney Cruise Line Appearances (2023 – Present)

Disneyland Resort (2023 – 2024)

The BDX droids made their first Disney Park appearance at Disneyland’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in October 2023 for “droid training.” Cast members referred to the droids by their color (orange, green, and blue) at the time.

The droids walked around for a bit in a manner reminiscent of ducklings before visiting the droids outside of Droid Factory. They also showcased how they could turn their flashlights on and off.

A year later, in 2024, the BDX droids made daily appearances during Disneyland’s Season of the Force. The droids also received new names: Grek (green) and Besh (blue). An orange BDX droid was also present on a rotating basis with the other droids.

Disney Cruise Line – Disney Wish (January 2025)

In late January 2025, Disney posted a video on social media of the BDX droids enjoying Star Wars: Hyperspace Lounge and Star Wars: Cargo Bay, two themed areas on the Disney Wish.

Though Disney didn’t share a reason why the droids were on the ship – just noting that it was a “once in a lifetime journey” – one of our staff members was onboard during that sailing and was able to see the droids firsthand. Their experience is detailed below.

BDX Droids in the Luna Lounge

In the afternoon of January 28, 2025, we attended a BDX droid stage show in Luna, one of the lounges on the Disney Wish. There were signs outside of the lounge alerting people that the area inside was being filmed by Disney Imagineering for research purposes.

Inside the lounge, the stage was decorated with cargo containers, nets, and even the infamous Star Wars ice cream maker prop to look like we were in the Star Wars universe. Some sides of the crates also had “BDX” written in Aurebesh.

At the beginning of the show, a droid handler appeared on the stage. After they introduced themselves, the large doors behind them opened up and a red BDX droid walked out. The droid handler said the name of the droid was “Red.” Red confidently looked around at the audience and happily chirped.

Shortly after, the doors opened again and a green BDX droid walked out. The droid handler introduced the green BDX droid as “Grek.” Compared to Red, Grek was shy and more unsure of the audience. The droid handler frequently encouraged her to be brave.

The show proceeded with exploring the different movements and emotions the droids could express, such as when Grek becoming annoyed with Red and turned her back to him. The droids walked, sprinted, and even jumped on the stage.

The droid handler brought over one of the crates on the stage for the BDX droids to scan, explaining that these droids were designed for assisting people in exploration. The BDX droids had a flashlight that they shined on the crate, and a shuttering sound was made after a successful scan.

The show concluded with the BDX droids posing on stage with the droid handler for photographs. We chatted afterwards with Disney Imagineer Tony Dohi – known for helping to create the Spider-Man “stuntronic” used at Avengers Campus – and learned that this show was an experiment to answer a few different questions:

• How do the BDX droids handle walking on an uneven surface like a rocking ship?
• How do people respond to an experience like this? Is it enjoyable for them? Would people want to see more experiences like this?

As a thank you, we were invited to a more private BDX experience the following night in Star Wars: Cargo Bay.

BDX Droids in Star Wars: Cargo Bay

In the evening of January 29, 2025, we headed down to Star Wars: Cargo Bay to attend the private BDX droid experience, estimating that half of the people who attended the stage show the previous night were present.

There were signs posted outside of Star Wars: Cargo Bay to alert people that Disney Imagineering was filming this experience as well.

Once inside, the same droid handler from the previous night introduced themselves and Red as Red walked around and greeted people with happy chirps. Soon after, Grek shyly joined Red.

The droid handler informed us that Red and Grek needed our help with scanning the Star Wars creatures that were in the cages around the room. Since this was a smaller setting, the droids also often walked up to people and interacted with them by scanning something they were wearing or expressing a certain emotion.

At one point, Grek became enamored with the tallest audience member in the room. After receiving a pep talk from the droid handler, she shyly walked over to that person, and – interpreted through the droid handler – requested a picture with them. Afterwards, guests could take individual photos with the droids, just like the previous night.

Our staff member noted that both of these experiences truly felt like “Disney magic.”

Tokyo Disneyland (April 2025)

Shortly after getting their sea legs, the BDX droids ventured to Tokyo Disneyland in April 2025. For a limited time, guests were able to meet Grek (green unit), Oskar (orange unit), and Besh (blue unit) outside of Star Tours: The Adventure Continues.

Disneyland Paris (May 2025)

A month later, Red, Grek, and Oskar made their next international appearance at Disneyland Paris from May 4 to May 24, 2025. They were located in Discoveryland near Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain and Star Tours: The Adventure Continues.

Disneyland Paris described their personalities in the announcement post: “Red [Red], the leader of the group; Orange [Oskar], the forgetful one; and Green [Grek], the shy one.” Besh (the blue BDX unit) did not appear at Disneyland Paris.

Walt Disney World (Summer 2025, Jollywood Nights 2025)

After being retrofitted with more heat-resistant materials to stand up to the Florida weather, the four droids made their debut at Walt Disney World from July to August 2025. They roamed Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in a group at select times.

Later that year, guests attending Jollywood Nights at Disney’s Hollywood Studios were treated to a surprise meet and greet with the BDX droids again. This time, though, one droid was out at a time to visit with guests.

Shanghai Disneyland (2026)

In February and March 2026, the BDX droids became international travelers again when they made their debut at Shanghai Disneyland. Compared to their previous appearances in the Disney Parks, guests could meet the droids in a new story-based encounter called “Star Wars: BDX Robot Interstellar Encounter,” where a space explorer and BDX droid get lost in the “human” world while guests help them. This is similar to what our staff member experienced on the Disney Wish, suggesting Disney Imagineering might be trying out more story-based meet and greets.

Merchandise, Movie Appearances, and More

After the droids proved popular with guests, merchandise slowly started to appear, first starting with a pin set featuring three of the droids. Disney also teased a new Droid Factory figure set of Red, Besh, Grek, and Oskar would be available for purchase on May the Fourth this year.

Merchandise isn’t the only place where guests can see the droids. Fortnite recently confirmed the addition of the BDX droids on May 1, 2026, with the new Droid Tycoon game. The droids were also confirmed to make an appearance in the upcoming Star Wars film, The Mandalorian and Grogu movie, releasing in theaters on May 22, 2026.

Future of Disney Robotics

In March 2025, it was reported that Disney Imagineering and NVIDIA – known for cutting-edge work in artificial intelligence, robotics, and graphic chips – were collaborating to power the next generation of entertainment robots. As Kyle Laughlin, senior VP at Walt Disney Imagineering Research and Development, said:

“The BDX droids are just the beginning. We’re committed to bringing more characters to life in ways the world hasn’t seen before…”

In the past year alone, Disney has featured meet and greets with HERBIE (Fantastic Four) and WALL-E and EVE, with the walking Olaf animatronic being the next major hit for the international Disney Parks.

Disney Imagineering has also branched out to creating more Star Wars characters, including a new droidsmith Audio-Animatronic named Otto, the same species as Babu Frik. He was revealed at the Disney Experiences session at SXSW 2025, sitting atop a BDX droid.

Only time will tell what character Disney Imagineering will bring to life next. For now, though, it’s clear we will continue to see these popular droids in the parks and media.

We wish you a very happy Star Wars Day, and as always, “May the Force be with you!”

Have you seen the BDX droids in the Disney Parks? Let us know on social media.

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