Star Wars Fanatics Show Up In 'Force' For Midnight Toy Rollout

PORTER RANCH (CBSLA.com) — For the "Star Wars" fanatics camped out at a Porter Ranch Wal-Mart on Thursday night, midnight couldn't come soon enough.

At 12 a.m., Wal-Mart and other stores were planning to stock their shelves with 500 new toys from "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," officially kicking off what is sure to be a frenzy for the action figures and collectibles this Holiday season.

The start of the toy bonanza has been named "Force Friday."

"I'm so excited because maybe we might see the toys of Darth Vader or the Jedis," said 7-year-old BJ Padilla, strolling the aisles at the Porter Ranch Wal-Mart.

"Stars Wars" fans of all ages showed up in force. Some hoped to gain a competitive advantage.

Andrew Balcorda, for example, was planning to rush ahead of the pack of shoppers with special skate shoes.

"It's actually really exciting," Balcorda said. "I collect most of the [Star Wars] Lego figures. I have a little setup in one of my rooms and there's just a bunch of different toys."

The latest installment in the sci-fi saga hits theaters in December and is expected to gross $2 billion in box office sales.

But analysts are projecting that toys, such as those going on sale at midnight, will rake in an additional $5 billion.

The Porter Ranch Wal-Mart plans to stay open until 1:30 a.m. Friday morning.