Changes in Star Wars re-releases

The first film was released in 1977 under the title Star Wars. The subtitle Episode IV – A New Hope was retroactively added to the opening crawl in a subsequent release.[24][25] Lucasfilm dates the addition to the theatrical re-release on April 10, 1981.[6][24][25] This change was made to bring the original film in line with the titling of its sequel, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980).[6]

Some scenes on Tatooine were modified for the 1997 Special Edition, including scenes of stormtroopers and dewbacks to make the creatures move using CGI,[lower-alpha 12] the krayt dragon call made by Obi-Wan Kenobi to scare off the Tusken Raiders,[26][lower-alpha 13] the addition of rocks in front of the cave R2-D2 hides in,[10][lower-alpha 14] and the external shot of Kenobi's hut.[6][27] The shadow of Luke's landspeeder was redone in one shot,[28] and creatures, robots, and ships were added to Mos Eisley, including elements created for the Shadows of the Empire multimedia campaign.[29] A shot of the Millennium Falcon fighting its way out of Mos Eisley was also added.[10]

Han Solo (Harrison Ford) is cornered in the Mos Eisley cantina by the bounty hunter Greedo (Paul Blake), and Han shoots under the table to kill Greedo.[17] The 1997 Special Edition release of the film alters the scene so that Greedo shoots first and misses (with Han's head digitally altered to move away from the laser blast). The scene was altered again for the 2004 DVD release of the film so that Han and Greedo shoot simultaneously;[19] this was shortened by several frames for the 2011 Blu-ray.[30] The scene was further modified for the 2019 4K Ultra HD release with the addition of a close-up shot of Greedo speaking (without subtitles),[lower-alpha 15] the removal of a reverse shot of Greedo, and a re-rendering of the visual effects.[16][33][lower-alpha 16]

According to Paul Blake, the scene was originally created as a result of Lucas having to cut a special effects-heavy scene introducing Jabba the Hutt[35] due to budget and schedule concerns.[36] The original version of the Greedo scene is considered iconic,[33] while the altered version is one of the most controversial changes to the film. Fans have coined the phrase "Han shot first" to protest the change,[37] which according to Polygon alters Han's moral ambiguity and his fundamental character.[38] Lucas has stated that he always intended for Greedo to shoot first.[34][39] In 2015, a replica of an early script for Star Wars was discovered in the archives of the University of New Brunswick library. In the script, dated March 15, 1976, Han shoots first.[40] Blake said in a 2016 interview: "Of course, it said it all in the original script, we played in the scene in English and at the end of the scene, it reads, 'Han shoots the alien.' It's all it says and that's what happened."[41]

Blake felt that Greedo shooting at and missing Solo at very short range made him appear inept, and that Greedo has more glory if he is "just blown away".[41] One legal expert argued that Greedo's behavior constituted a direct threat and would warrant preemptive action in self-defense in the United States.[42] In 2014, when asked by fans who shot first, Harrison Ford replied: "I don't know and I don't care."[43] In the 2018 film Solo: A Star Wars Story, Han shoots antagonist Tobias Beckett mid-sentence, killing him. Writers Lawrence and Jonathan Kasdan confirmed that this was a deliberate reference, and that the Solo shooting script specifies that "There can be no question that Han shoots first."[44][45][46]

The original script for Star Wars included a scene between Jabba the Hutt (who was designed in concept art drawings similarly to his appearance in Return of the Jedi and often traveling on a sedan chair) and Han Solo, set in Mos Eisley's Dock 94. The scene was filmed with Harrison Ford as Solo and Declan Mulholland, a large man, wearing a furry vest as a stand-in for Jabba.[26][47] Lucas intended to replace Mulholland in post-production with a stop-motion character. Due to time limitations and budget constraints, the scene was cut. In the 1997 Special Edition, the scene was reinserted with a CGI Jabba replacing Mulholland. In the original scene, Ford walked too close to Mulholland; Han stepping on Jabba's tail and causing him to squeal was created as a workaround (with Han digitally moved vertically to account for Jabba's tail).[26] Boba Fett was also added to the background of the scene,[47] and seems to break the fourth wall.[10]

The insertion of this scene into the film was criticized for being superfluous to the previous cantina scene with Greedo, slowing down the pacing, and failing to move the plot forward.[6][26][47] The original 1997 CGI, having big Cheshire Cat-like eyes and a small head, was also described as "atrocious".[26][lower-alpha 17] Jabba's design was modified for the 2004 DVD release, making him more realistic and similar to his depiction in Return of the Jedi.[26]

Luke's lightsaber, which had appeared green in the training scene aboard the Millennium Falcon, was corrected to blue for the 2019 4K Ultra HD release. Additionally, the effects during the duel between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader were refined.[23]

During the production of Star Wars, scenes were filmed featuring Biggs Darklighter and his friendship with Luke Skywalker set on Tatooine and at the rebel base on Yavin 4 shortly before the attack on the Death Star. The scenes were cut because they were felt to disrupt the pacing of the film. In the original theatrical release, Biggs is only briefly mentioned as one of Luke's friends early in the movie, and he is seen briefly during the attack on the Death Star, in which he dies and Luke reacts strongly to his death. The Special Edition of A New Hope incorporated the previously deleted scene on Yavin 4. The loss of the scenes at Tatooine and Yavin 4 was felt to lessen the significance of Biggs' death, cast Luke's reaction to the death as overly strong, and make the framing of the death as a tragedy confusing. It was felt that the addition of the Yavin 4 scene helped to rectify this issue.[48][49][lower-alpha 18]

A 180° turn of CGI X-wing fighters flying from Yavin 4 towards the Death Star was added to the 1997 Special Edition. Wired points out that this erroneously shows that the moon is "very clearly in range of the Death Star from the very beginning of the battle."[10]

Amongst other changes, close-up shots of the wampa on Hoth were inserted.[10][lower-alpha 19] In the shot when the Millennium Falcon detaches from the Star Destroyer, Boba Fett's ship, the Slave I, was replaced with a version following the Falcon more closely.[10][lower-alpha 20] New establishing shots were added to Cloud City, which create some inconsistencies with later shots. Another shot has a railing added to it, which does not reflect properly.[10] New shots of Cloud City's citizens reacting to Lando Calrissian's evacuation orders are added.[10][lower-alpha 21] In the 1997 Special Edition, the audio of Emperor Palpatine falling down the shaft in Return of the Jedi was played when Luke Skywalker falls down the chute; this was removed in later releases.[10]

Clive Revill originally provided the Emperor's voice in The Empire Strikes Back, while actress Marjorie Eaton portrayed him physically, wearing a mask.[lower-alpha 22] Ultimately the actress and voice actor were replaced by Ian McDiarmid, who portrayed the character in later films, for the 2004 DVD edition and subsequent releases.[54][55][lower-alpha 23] The dialogue was changed with this alteration.[57] Wired criticized the change, saying that Palpatine "looks more like he did 20 years before in the timeline than he does a year later in Return of the Jedi and again reminds you of poorer movies in the middle of this excellent one," and that the altered dialogue "reads as ignorant within the context of the rest of the film."[10]

Boba Fett's dialogue in the film was originally recorded by Jason Wingreen.[19][58] Subsequently, Attack of the Clones revealed Boba to be a clone of Jango Fett, played by Temuera Morrison.[59] To reflect this, Morrison re-recorded Boba's lines for the 2004 DVD release of the film.[19][58][60][lower-alpha 24]

Following the initial limited theatrical release, Lucas added three exterior shots to the denouement to clarify that Lando and Chewbacca are on the Falcon, not the Rebel frigate that Luke, Leia, and the droids are on.[4] In 1997, a shot of Vader's shuttle landing in his Star Destroyer was added to the sequence in which Luke uses the Force to contact Leia.[10][lower-alpha 25]

An establishing shot of a bantha herd was added, and a beak and extra tentacles were added to the Sarlacc.[10] The 2011 Blu-ray extended the front door of Jabba's palace, making the door appear three times longer from the outside than it does on the inside.[61]

The scene in which Jabba the Hutt feeds the dancer Oola to the rancor opens with a performance by the Max Rebo Band and its lead singer Sy Snootles. In the original theatrical release, the song is "Lapti Nek", sung in the fictional language Huttese. The 1997 Special Edition changed the performance to "Jedi Rocks".[62] The puppet used for Snootles was also replaced with CGI in the Special Edition. This was made because, according to producer Rick McCallum, Lucas could not achieve the "large musical number" he envisioned because characters could not move in certain ways; Snootles could not open her mouth to lip sync correctly, and her eyes did not move. The Special Edition increased the size of the Max Rebo Band from three members to twelve.[62] A Polygon author wrote that the new material is "an overproduced intrusion that takes twice as long to add nothing" and distracts from the scene's intention: to establish the trapdoor leading to the rancor and Jabba's deadliness. The same writer stated that he thought "Lapti Nek" was a better song, describing the vocals of "Jedi Rocks" as difficult to listen to and having "the volume and vocal fry of a higher pitched Tina Turner but none of the soul".[38] A Wired writer similarly states that the new song is a grating, "pointless Pointer Sisters rip-off" and that the additions crowded the scene with dead-on-arrival CGI.[63] Den of Geek notes that the change negatively altered the tone of the scene and only "replaced one flawed effect with another", writing that "What was once a low-key yet appealing background moment in the movie's first act [has] grown into ... an in-your-face audio-visual spectacle".[64]

In the theatrical release of the film, Oola's death is filmed from outside the rancor pit: she falls into the pit, and her scream is heard from off-screen. In the 1997 Special Edition, extra shots were inserted depicting her in the pit, including shots where she looks up to the crowd, the pit door being raised, and a shot of her terror. The rancor and Oola as she screams remain off-screen.[49] Femi Taylor, who played Oola, impressed critics with her ability to reprise the role over a decade later without visible difference.[49][47][lower-alpha 26] James Whitbrook at io9 praised the additions to the scene, writing that it teased the rancor well while still keeping the monster a surprise for Luke's later battle with it.[49] Conversely, Den of Geek UK criticized the additions as unnecessary and felt that they made the audience familiar with the pit, weakening Luke's scene.[47]

At the climax of the film, the Emperor tortures Luke with Force lightning, prompting Darth Vader to throw the Emperor down a chasm. In the theatrical release and earlier home video releases, Vader watches and acts in silence.[65] The 2011 Blu-ray release adds Vader muttering "No" and then yelling a drawn-out "No!", creating a parallel with his similar cry at the end of Revenge of the Sith. This addition was described as unnecessary and sounding terrible,[65][6] and a Polygon author said it "takes what was once emotional and make it laughable".[38] The author also felt that the addition displayed a distrust in an audience's ability to interpret Vader's emotions.[38] The symmetry created by the parallel was described as clumsy and was felt to mock the scene in the prequel.[6][65]

In the scene where Anakin Skywalker is unmasked, the 2004 DVD release digitally removed his eyebrows to reflect Anakin burning on Mustafar at the end of Revenge of the Sith.[60] Actor Sebastian Shaw's brown eyes were also digitally changed to blue to match Hayden Christensen's eye color.

The film ends with a scene of the Rebel Alliance and a village of Ewoks on Endor celebrating the death of the Emperor and victory over the Empire. The original theatrical release of the film featured the song "Ewok Celebration", also known as "Yub Nub", playing over the celebration.[6][63] The 1997 Special Edition release of the film replaced "Ewok Celebration" with score composed by John Williams titled "Victory Celebration",[6] and the scene was lengthened to include shots of celebration on the planets Coruscant,[6][66] Bespin, and Tatooine.[67] The 2004 DVD release further added a shot set on Naboo, in which a Gungan is given a line of dialogue,[6] and added the Senate building and Jedi Temple to Coruscant.[68]

At the end of the film, Darth Vader is redeemed by killing the Emperor to save Luke Skywalker's life, then dies of his injuries shortly after, and appears to Luke as Anakin Skywalker alongside the Force spirits of Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. In the 1983 theatrical release, Sebastian Shaw plays this Force ghost in addition to an unmasked Vader. Hayden Christensen later played Anakin in the prequel trilogy films Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. To reflect this, the 2004 DVD release of Return of the Jedi replaced Shaw's appearance as the Force ghost with Christensen, which was considered controversial by some.[60] The Digital Bits notes that the 2019 4K restoration made it more obvious where Anakin's head was replaced.[68]

The DVD released in 2001 features a slightly extended cut of the podrace sequence,[11] as well as a brief scene on Coruscant focusing on Anakin and Jar Jar Binks.[69]

The extended podrace includes a longer introduction of the racers and the second lap of the race, both of which Screen Rant says do not contribute to the story, and potentially negatively effect the film's pacing. Additionally, Watto cheering for Anakin's rival Sebulba was removed for home media releases.[69]

In the original version of The Phantom Menace, a puppet was used to portray Yoda except for two scenes near the end of the film.[70] This was changed for the 2011 Blu-ray release, with the puppet being replaced with a CGI model, similar to those used for the film's sequels Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith.[71]

A few special effects which were not ready for the initial wide release were completed for release in digital-projection theaters.[lower-alpha 5] The DVD features the digital version[12] with some extended lines of dialogue.[13][14] The 2011 Blu-ray features a small editing change to the Coruscant speeder chase, adds a voiceover to Anakin's vision of Shmi,[6] and changes the order of shots depicting Count Dooku's escape.[72]

The theatrical release had a diagonal wipe from Obi-Wan leaving Mustafar to Anakin using his hand to crawl from the lava. The DVD changed this to a direct cut, which was reverted on the 2011 Blu-ray.[15] The latter release also has additional clone trooper dialogue[6] as they land on Utapau, and added moss to the treehouse on Kashyyyk.[73]