MAY 6 (Reuters) — Hundreds of “Star Wars” and Lego enthusiasts came together for the “May the 4th Be With You” weekend – celebrating the Star Wars franchise – to build the world’s biggest Lego Millennium Falcon in Australia.
The model of the iconic spaceship was made from nearly 250,000 toy bricks at Westfield Southland shopping center in Cheltenham, a suburb of Melbourne.
The structure is almost five meters wide and is flanked by two TIE Fighters, each standing at approximately two meters high and created from almost 80,000 bricks.
The three models, which have been set against a galactic backdrop, were ready in time for Monday (May 4), also known as unofficial “Star Wars” day.
Leading the project was father and son Lego Master Builder team, Dan and Chris Steininger, who flew in from the U.S. especially for the event.
Steininger senior said structures of this size normally take at least a week to complete but fan support meant they were done in two days.
The Lego “Star Wars” models will be on display in Westfield Southland till Sunday, May 10.
The J.J. Abrams-directed seventh installment in the series, “Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens,” opens in December this year.
It is the first of the “Star Wars” films to be released after the acquisition of George Lucas’s Lucasfilms by Walt Disney Pictures.
Fans got a glimpse of the movie in a trailer showing Harrison Ford reprising his famed role as Han Solo.
“Stars Wars” and Lego fans join forces in Australia to build the world’s largest Millennium Falcon, using nearly a quarter of a million bricks.
