Star Wars Day delivered plenty of surprises this year, but few as unexpected as Barack Obama and Mark Hamill teaming up to make an announcement through the Force.
The Sketch
The Obama Foundation dropped a well-timed video on May the Fourth, revealing that tickets for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago go on sale on May 6, 2026. The clip opens with text reading “A short time from now on the South Side of Chicago…” before Hamill reaches out across the galaxy to contact the former president.
“Hear me… President Obama… President Obama,” Hamill says.
Obama appears on screen, walking through the presidential center: “Mark, I told you you have to stop contacting me like this.”
“Oh! I just wanted to ask: when can I come to the presidential center?” Hamill replies.
Obama hits him with an exasperated look as John Williams-esque music plays and the ticket sale announcement fills the screen.
“Oh!” Hamill replies.
The video was shared by the official Obama Foundation social media pages and set the May 6 public ticket sale date ahead of the center’s grand opening on June 19, 2026 — Juneteenth.
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Tickets to the Obama Presidential Center available May 6.
@BarackObama @MarkHamill
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Tickets to the Obama Presidential Center available May 6. @BarackObama @MarkHamill pic.twitter.com/z9MUJqQMBD
— The Obama Foundation (@ObamaFoundation) May 4, 2026
Planning a Visit
The Obama Presidential Center sits at 6001 S. Stony Island Ave. in Chicago’s Jackson Park neighborhood on the South Side — the community where Barack and Michelle Obama met and started their lives together. The 19.3-acre Obama Foundation campus includes a museum, a basketball court, a Great Lawn, and more.
Once it opens on June 19, campus grounds will be accessible seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. The museum operates on a timed-entry ticket system and is open Monday from 1:00 to 8:00 p.m. and Tuesday through Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tickets go on sale on the Obama Foundation website on May 6.
What was your favorite Star Wars Day 2026 announcement? Let Disney Fanatic know in the comments!
