Star Wars fans, rejoice! Lucasfilm has revealed that it will be re-releasing Star Wars to theaters on February 17, 2027, in celebration of the film’s 50th anniversary. Notice I said Star Wars, not Star Wars: A New Hope. This is because, for the first time ever, it will be the original theatrical cut of the film returning to the big screen.
Fans will be able to watch Star Wars (which received the ‘A New Hope’ title later after the original release) the way it appeared in theaters in 1977. This version of the film has become notoriously difficult to find, with some die-hard fans resorting to editing and cutting it together themselves. This is because, in the decades after the film’s release, creator George Lucas re-released the film with new special effects and edits that were not possible when Star Wars was originally created. These include CGI effects that have not aged well, completely new scenes, and, of course, Greedo firing the first shot.
Devout fans of the franchise have rejected these updated editions, but have had to reluctantly tolerate them, as nearly every home media or streaming release of the film has been one of these redone cuts. Lucasfilm and Disney has acknowledged that this cut will be digitally restored, it will indeed be the original version of the film as it released in 1977. Some reports suggest that it will also see an IMAX release, but the film’s studio has not yet commented on this.
