In case you missed it, May 22, 2026 brings some highly anticipated changes to Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run at Hollywood Studios and Disneyland. But might there be one teensy downside to these otherwise fantastic upgrades? Let’s dive into my beloved single rider at at Smugglers Run to learn more…
Why I Love The Smugglers Run Single Rider Line
The single rider line is an option at six Walt Disney World rides where you can opt to ride alone (with another group, without your group) after waiting in a shorter line. In general, single rider lines don’t come with much of a change in ride experience. They may bypass much of the queue, but once you get on the ride you’re like any other rider.
The situation at Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run is slightly different. That ride assigns “roles” to the six rides in each pod—2 Pilots in the front, 2 Gunners in the middle, 2 Engineers in the back. Most people consider Pilot to be the coveted role since you get to actually fly the Millennium Falcon. Gunners are in the middle seats and mostly just have to press one button the whole time. Engineers are in the back and have to press a variety of buttons throughout the ride.
Because it requires you to look away from the screen while already sitting in back, Engineer is usually considered the worst role. Because it’s the role in the back row, and the worst, it’s usually the role single riders end up with.
It’s worth an aside here to say that I’ve been a single rider and offered Pilot before. Sometimes a person is too nervous to fly or they’re a repeat visitor just trying to do a kind thing (if I’m in the Lightning Lane or at rope drop and get Pilot, I’ll usually give it away). As long as six bottoms get into the seats when it’s time to ride, people are free to swap positions. Of course, as a single rider I’d never ask for a better spot—Engineer is sort of what you signed up for.
I do my job (and well!) when I’m an Engineer, but you definitely don’t have to. Engineer is a fine role to just sit and enjoy the ride if you want.
In part because people don’t want the Engineer role, the Smugglers Run single rider line is not very popular. How unpopular? Well, I’ve waited ~0 minutes in it almost every time I’ve used it at Hollywood Studios over the last several years, including one time last year when the standby wait was 100 minutes. Certainly at some points, on some coast (I don’t track Disneyland single rider lines as closely) it has been longer. I know this because I’ve measured the wait from the bottom of the stairs before (about 20 minutes).
What’s Changing May 22, 2026
On May 22, 2026, there will be major updates to Smugglers Run at both Hollywood Studios and Disneyland. First, the ride will get updated scenes and storylines (including Mandalorian and Grogu), with guests being “in control” of their destination. These updates will lead to some increased demand for the ride across the board, including in the single rider line. But there’s more.
The other update is that “[a]nother new gameplay addition allows the engineer positions to communicate with Grogu during the mission.” This is obviously the big change for this post. Grogu is popular, and any improvement to the Engineer role will make the single rider line more palatable to most guests. So, what will have to my beloved single rider line?
First, there are two clear possibilities for what could happen to the mechanics of the line. Either the line will continue to be used for the Engineer role or guests in the single rider line will get assigned whichever spot the other guests decline, usually Gunner if Engineer is in higher demand. (Alternatively, Cast Members will continue to assign single riders to Engineer, but other guests will ask them to switch more often.)
Second, there are a range of possibilities for what will happen to demand for the single rider line, in that it can go up from what it is now (nearly 0) to infinity…and beyond (sorry, wrong space story).
If I had to guess, I’d say that while the Grogu aspect of the new mission will have some novelty in the early days, I don’t think it will be enough to change the dynamics of the single rider line long-term, but I have some caveats.
The Engineer role is in the back of the ship and involves an exhaustive amount of time looking away from the action to hit buttons. It just isn’t a fun role to do well. I’m not sure how Disney will involve Grogu in this, but as long as the job is mostly still hitting buttons and looking away from the screen, I don’t see the demand shifting that much.
If Disney sticks with single riders being Engineers, then its probable the early days of the new version of the ride will come with a lot of people who want to check out the new role. But once the hype dies down and the b/vloggers get their content, we’ll be left mostly with vacationers who want to ride with their families substantially more than they want to have the worst-but-maybe-better-than-it-used-to-be role in the ship.
My big caveat to this is that people will be much more aware of the single rider line than they used to be. Some of the low demand for single rider has to do with getting the Engineer role, but some just has to do with awareness. Other factors (like party composition) are in play too, but awareness must be part of the issue if I’ve seen no single rider wait when standby is 100 minutes.
This change to the ride will bring new attention to the Engineer role and the single rider line, which might mean a long-term increase in demand even if the role isn’t improved or Disney opts to let single riders fill any slot on the ride. This is probably the best case scenario—only small long-term impacts.
The worst case scenario—for the single rider line—would be if the Grogu component is actually enjoyable. It’ll be all the worse is single riders continue to get assigned the Engineer role, but even if Grogu proves so popular that the single riders wind up in the Gunner seats some of the time, we’ll still see a lot more demand for the chance at taking care of Grogu.
As with most things, I hope I’m wrong. I hope Grogu is a hit and people still just don’t care about the single rider line. Maybe I’m a dreamer.
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