This week, fans across the galaxy united for the ultimate fan event, as Lucasfilm rolled out the red carpet for its official Star Wars Celebration. There, they were treated to celebrity panels, behind-the-scenes looks, and reveals of new projects coming to theaters and Disney+.
While that's all very exciting, an overlooked piece of news from this week came from our neighbors across the pond, as UK audiences are also getting a big release. However, there's a slight caveat with this new announcement.
The saga begins (again)
Spanning across nine films and countless spin-off shows, novels, comic books, and video games, few series have captured the globe as much as Star Wars. Since the '70s, audiences everywhere have been swept up in the saga of Jedi, Sith Lords, bounty hunters, and starships, but there has been a vocal outcry for a return to the original film.
Ever the cinematic innovator, George Lucas was notorious for enhancing and reshaping the galaxy with the various re-releases of the original trilogy. However, fans in the UK are getting a special screening of the original, uncut, and unaltered version of A New Hope when it rolls into the BFI's Film on Film festival this summer.
The Hollywood Reporter shared the following from The Telegraph,
"The British Film Institute’s Film on Film Festival in June will open with a screening of one of the few remaining Technicolor prints that was produced for Star Wars’ initial run. This is, the story reports, the first time the original print has been publicly screened since December 1978..."
That bit of news should have every Star Wars fan in the UK perked up, but what does this mean for Disney? It means its streaming service is missing a vital piece of the Lucasfilm legacy.
Disney, now owners of Lucasfilm and all its cinematic offerings, has everything a Star Wars fan could want. From the established films to the various spin-off series, and yet the original, unaltered version of the one that started it all remains shockingly absent.
As of now, subscribers can log on to Disney+ and watch A New Hope with all the extras Lucas put in upon its most recent re-release. While there's nothing wrong with that, and it doesn't take away from the whole of the narrative, many fans of all ages would still like to see the untouched version.
In an age where Disney seems to be gung-ho for nostalgia, it feels a bit odd that the company wouldn't capitalize on the desire for the original, untouched film. With any luck (and maybe a few Jedi mind tricks), Disney will take this as a sign to bring the uncut, unspoiled version to Disney+.
Fans can still watch the rest of the Star Wars franchise on Disney+.