Here’s some good news for the “hand shot first” crowd. Its main cut Star Wars (1977), known as the film a new hopeReturning to theaters. We first learned that in August something The 50th anniversary version of the film will be screened again in 2027. But we now know that this is what everyone actually saw before George Lucas made these questionable, CGI-heavy changes in the 1997 Special Edition. The re-release hits theaters on February 19, 2027.
In short Update Posted on the official Star Wars website on Friday, Lucasfilm clarified however that this will be the original cut. It described it as “a newly restored version of the classic Star Wars (1977) theatrical release”. Gizmodo Report That it received further clarification that it would indeed be OG before its “improvement” to Special Edition (and subsequent re-releases).
The mid-’90s edits included early CGI effects that largely served as a testing ground before Lucas moved on to the prequel trilogy. It also added a CG Jabba the Hutt/Han Solo scene (originally shot with actor Thomas Declan Mulholland as Jabba) that was cut from the original version.
Perhaps most infamously, Greedo was first shot by Hanne in the Lucas Canteen scene. Hardcore fans hate change. It smoothed out some of the rough edges of Hahn’s beginning. This gave him a shorter, less dramatic journey as the reluctant hero he became as the story progressed. As if Lucas was hinting, “Okay, Han may have started a spree, but he wouldn’t shoot a bounty hunter in cold blood! Think of the kids watching!”
But in my view, Return of the Jedi 1997 and later changed for the worst. While I didn’t mind the new celebratory music and location montage at the end (others disagree), it also added that cringy and out-of-place musical number to Jabba’s Palace. But I despised the change Lucas made for the 2011 Blu-ray release: Darth Vader’s overly telegraphed “Nooooo…” as he makes the climactic decision to bury the Emperor in the Death Star’s reactor. Come on, George: it’s even stronger for the audience to project Vader’s thought process into his silent helmet. But if Disney sticks with the 50th anniversary scheme, we’ll have to wait until 2033 to see the unaltered version of that movie in theaters.