Original Star Wars Cut Returns to Theaters for 50th Anniversary

It's official: the original theatrical cut of Star Wars is returning to theaters in 2027 for the movie's 50th anniversary. No, not the Special Edition of Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope, but the original version of the film as it was shown in theaters in 1977, before it gained an episode number or subtitle.

On Friday, Lucasfilm confirmed that the 1977 original cut of Star Wars will return to theaters everywhere for a limited time beginning Feb. 19, 2027, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the little sci-fi movie that launched a multi-billion-dollar franchise. The screening, as described by the studio, will be of a "newly restored" version of the 1997 original theatrical release of Star Wars.

Lucasfilm screening the original Star Wars in theaters is a huge turn for fans who have longed to see Star Wars as it was originally. It wasn't long after the original release that Star Wars creator George Lucas, who directed the first film, began tweaking the finished movie, such as adding A New Hope to the title once he was sure sequels would follow.

The most egregious update was the 1997 re-release, which was partly a placeholder to buy time while he continued to work on the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy. Instead of releasing the original Star Wars back into theaters for the film's 20th anniversary, Lucas released the first Star Wars Special Edition, which added numerous new digital effects and, in many cases, removed some of the Oscar-winning original effects from the film.

The Original Star Wars Finally Returns To Theaters

Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher), and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) aboard the Death Star in Star Wars: A New Hope

What has frustrated fans even more is that the divisive Star Wars Special Edition — which has been tweaked even more over the years as Lucas continued to fuss over whether Han shot first and attempt to make them feel of a piece with the Prequel Trilogy — has been the only version of Star Wars available to own on home media or stream for decades. The same is true of its sequels, with the last time the original cuts were released being as a special feature on a 2006 DVD set. That release is notorious among fans for its shoddiness. This has led to a subcultre of fan restorations like Harmy's Despecialized Edition and Project 4k77.

The first hint at a sea change in that regard was a showing of the original Star Wars at a BFI event earlier this year. Now, Star Wars fans everywhere will have the opportunity to appreciate Star Wars the way it was. Whether the other films get the same treatment for their upcoming anniversaries, or any of them make it to streaming or home media, remains to be seen.

George Lucas directed Star Wars, the first film to introduce viewers to the space opera conflict between the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance, and the mythology of the Jedi and the Force. It would become the first film in the original Star Wars Trilogy and, eventually, the larger "Skywalker Saga," though it is the fourth in terms of in-universe chronology. It's iconic cast includes the original performances of Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Harrison Ford as Han Solo, Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia Organa, Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin, Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anthony Daniels as C-3PO, Kenny Baker as R2-D2, Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca, and David Prowse and James Earl Jones as Darth Vader.

Star Wars returns to theaters on Feb. 19, 2027.