“Episode IV – A New Hope”
when A new hope Originally premiered in 1977, it was simply called “Star Wars” and did not have a subtitle. But, once The empire strikes back Established the tradition of an episode number, Lucas retitled Star Wars Like “Episode IV – A New Hope” in the opening crawl for the 1981 re-release.
More Stormtroopers and CGI Dewbacks
Lucas filmed a new scene with more storm troopers canvassing the area where C-3PO and R2-D2’s escape pod crashed before the squad leader says – Someone was in the pod… The practical debacks have been replaced with CGI ones that can move around, so now one of them opens his mouth to match the roar of the theatrical cut.
A new shot of the Jawa Sandcrawler
Right after the new storm scene on Tatooine, Lucas’ team created a new shot of the Java Sandcrawler. The original shot showed the sandcrawler climbing over a dune from further away, while the new shot shows it up close as the camera pans.
New rocks in front of R2-D2
For the 2011 Blu-ray release, Lucas added CGI rocks to the scene where R2-D2 hides from the Sand Men as they investigate Luke Skywalker’s spider. This was presumably done to make it more believable that the Sand Men would not have seen R2-D2 instantly, as he was only hiding in the shadows in previous releases.
Obi-Wan’s New Crate Dragon Sound
Another change for the 2011 Blu-ray release was a new Krayt Dragon sound that Obi-Wan Kenobi uses to scare the Sand Men. This version is more booming and even ghost-like, so it’s likely intended to be scarier than the original sound effect.
A new exterior shot of Ben Kenobi’s home
The original exterior shot of Ben Kenobi’s hut on Tatooine was a close-up with nothing much in the background. The new exterior shot is from further away, taken in the vastness of the terrain and shows smoke rising from the hut.
An expanded Mos Eisley Spaceport
Despite being called a “spaceport,” the original version of Mos Eisley was small with not as many people and ships as one would expect. For the special edition, Lucas added new footage of a much larger Mos Eisley full of larger buildings, ships taking off, more people and some CGI creatures.
New Aliens at the Moss Eisley Cantina
Lucas also added new aliens to the Mos Eisley Cantina scene, which he was never entirely satisfied with in the theatrical cut. The most noticeable change is two different werewolf aliens, a Defel named Arleil Schous and a Schistavanen named Lak Sivrak, replaced by a Sarkan named Melas and a Pacithhip named Ketwol, respectively.
Gredo protection first
One of the most famous Star Wars Special edition changes is Gredo now shooting first instead of Han Solo in the Mos Eisley Cantina. In the 1997 release, Greedo clearly shoots first, but subsequent releases chopped a few frames to make the two shoot closer to the same time. In the 2019 4K release on Disney+, the scene was changed again to have Gredo say “McLunkey,” Which roughly translates to “This will be the end of you.” It was later confirmed that Lucas himself made the change before selling it Star Wars Franchise to Disney.
A restored Jabba the Hutt scene
While Jabba the Hutt originally debuted in Return of the JediLucas filmed a scene with him and Han Solo for the first one Star Wars Movie. The scene was ultimately cut due to the financial and technological limitations of adding a stop-motion animated Jabba, but Lucas’ team created a CGI Jabba for the 1997 Special Edition. Another updated version of CGI Jabba was created for the 2004 DVD release, one that more closely matched his appearance in the other films. Boba Fett is also digitally inserted into the scene, looking in the direction of the camera before and after Jabba.
A new shot of the Millennium Falcon taking off
When Han Solo escaped from the storm troopers, a new shot was added from the Millennium Falcon took off, while the subsequent shot of the ship flying above the spaceport was replaced with more smooth motion.
C-3PO’s restored dialogue
Several lines of C-3PO’s dialogue are missing from the theatrical cut, including “We’ve stopped” in the Java Sandcrawler and an explanation for how to disable the tractor beam on the Death Star. The original cut had the characters staring at the screen in silence while C-3PO said nothing, which feels awkward knowing what C-3PO was supposed to say.
A stormtrooper audibly bumps his head
One Stormtrooper actor accidentally hit his head on the door while filming A new hopeA moment that made it into the final cut. Rather than removing it, Lucas decided to make it seem like intentional comedy by adding a sound effect when the trooper bumps his head. Lucas would later recall the moment by Jango Fett hitting his head while coming slave i in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones.
Translations from English to Arabic
In the original theatrical cut, the labels on the power terminal are written in English when Obi-Wan Kenobi shuts down the power. For the special edition, the words were changed to Aurebesh, the letters of Galactic Basic in the Star Wars Universe.
Han runs into a stormtrooper hangar
When Han Solo was chasing a group of stormtroopers in the theatrical cuts, he chased them to the end of a car, so they had no choice but to start shooting back. In the special edition, this moment is made more comical by Han running into an entire hangar full of stormtroopers.
New Stormtrooper dialogue on the Death Star
Lucas also added some new dialogue for the storm, including – There is no one here. Before a couple exits the Millennium Falcon. He also created a new bit of comedy through a storm scream “Shut the blast doors!” While chasing Han Solo and Chewbacca, only for them to escape as another storm trooper shouts “Open the blast doors! Open the blast doors!” However, some long Star Wars Fans insist they heard the line when they saw the movie in theaters in 1977.
The Biggs Darklighter scene restored
Luke Skywalker originally had a few scenes with his childhood friend, Biggs Darklighter, but those scenes were cut from the final film. However, the scene of Luke and Biggs reuniting was added back in, reminding the audience of their friendship and making it sad when Biggs was killed in battle. The uncut version of the scene had the Red Leader mention that he knew Luke’s father, but this was removed and covered up by a rebel pilot walking across the screen.
New shots of X-Wings & TIE Fighters
Lucas created a new shot of CGI X-Wings and Y-Wings approaching the Death Star as the camera pans, making the moment that much bigger. The Death Star Battle also features some new shots of X-Wings and TIE fighters working in the dogfights.
New explosions for planets and superweapons
The two great explosions of A new hopeThe Destruction of Alderaan and the Death Star received an update for the Special Edition. The Alderaan explosion is now much bigger than the theatrical cut, while the Death Star explosion now has two rings expanding outward.
Real people replaced mannequins in one key scene
Probably due to a lack of extras, the original version of the award ceremony had fake rebels standing at the entrance. This was updated with real actors in the special edition, and the lighting is now slightly brighter with no need to hide fake humans.
New shots of the Wampa in The Empire Strikes Back
moving to The empire strikes backThe first noticeable change is the new scenes of the Wampa in the Ice Cave on Hot. The original version kept the Wampa mostly in the shadows or out of focus, similar to how the team behind Jaws Kept the shark hidden to create tension and hide that it did not look very good.
Ian McDiarmid appeared in Empire Strikes Back with new dialogue
For the 2004 DVD release, Ian McDiarmid reprized the role of Emperor Palpatine, replacing the original version of the character from the theatrical cut. The scene also features new dialogue from Palpatine said to Luke Skywalker “…is the offspring of Anakin Skywalker…” While Darth Vader asks how this is possible. This was done to reflect the then-upcoming Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the SithAs Vader believed Padmé Amidala died before birth.
A new shot of Slave I following the Millennium Falcon
When the Millennium Falcon Escapes by floating away with the Empire’s garbage, Lucas added a new extended shot of Boba Fett’s slave i Following, with the engine sounds effect of Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones included.
Cloud City is quite a bit embellished
The empire strikes back Special Edition features several changes to Cloud City, including a new shot of the Millennium Falcon Landing and an extended shot of a spider flying through the city. Lucas’ team also added more windows to make the city feel less claustrophobic and allow viewers to see the clouds.
Luke screams like Palpatine when he falls
One of Lucas’ more unusual Special Edition changes is adding Palpatine’s Return of the Jedi Shout out to Luke Skywalker’s case in Cloud City. This was likely a change made for novelty, as it was removed from subsequent releases.
New scenes of Darth Vader leaving Cloud City
In the theatrical version of The empire strikes backDarth Vader says “bring my shuttle” after his duel with Luke Skywalker, and is next seen on the Executor. In the special edition, Vader now says “Alert my star destroyer to prepare for my arrival” And there are new images of Vader walking to his shuttle and later arriving onboard it Executor In the midst of the action.
A new musical number in Jabba’s Palace
While A new hope has the largest number of observed changes, Return of the Jedi Has some of the biggest alterations of all three original trilogy films. The first was a new musical number in Jabba’s Palace, “JD Rocks,” which is much bigger than the original songs with more dancers and CGI aliens. The song is followed by a new scene of Jabba’s Twi’lek dancer falling into the pit just before the rancor eats her.
New shots of Tatooine and a bantha herd
The original cut of Return of the Jedi Cut straight from Jabba’s palace to the sail barge gliding across the desert, but now there is a transition shot of a bantha herd followed by the camera moving across the landscape.
A CGI Sarlacc Pit
While the original Sarlacc was nothing but a hole in the ground with protruding teeth, the special edition added a CGI creature with a beak and more tentacles. This is probably meant to emulate the mythological kraken eating those forced to walk the plank in the sea.
New Darth Vader dialogue
Darth Vader originally said nothing when he picked up his master and dropped him quietly to his death, but in the 2011 Blu-ray, Vader shouted “No!” How he picked up Palpatine. This could be done to add more clarity or tension to the moment, or it could be done to parallel Vader shouting “No!” at the end of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.
A montage of planets celebrating Palpatine’s death
The rebel victory celebration was limited to Endor in the theatrical cut of Return of the JediBut this special edition features a montage of other worlds celebrating across the galaxy. Some of these planets would later appear in the Star Wars Prequel trilogy, including Coruscant and Naboo.
New music for the Endor Celebration
The original version of the Endor celebration was also much lighter in tone, with the fun song “Ewok Celebration ‘Nub” closing the movie. For the special edition, this was replaced by the more orchestral “Victory Celebration,” Likely to give a more bittersweet and emotional tone to the end.
Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker’s Force Ghost
The final change to the original Star Wars trilogy is Hayden Christensen replacing Sebastian Shaw as the Force Ghost of Anakin Skywalker. Lucas did this because he believes it reflects the last time Anakin was good, and it makes his Force Ghost visually consistent with the prequel trilogy.
With George Lucas no longer in charge of the Star Wars franchise, it is unlikely that there will be any more special edition changes to the original trilogy. While Disney and Lucasfilm currently have no plans to release the theatrical versions of the films, perhaps the fans who prefer the cuts will eventually get their wish, but only time will tell.