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The following are partial lists of changes in Star Wars re-releases. The commercial success of Star Wars has given George Lucas the opportunity to tinker with his original trilogy, now called Episode IV: A New Hope, Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, and Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. In a September 2004 CNN article, Lucas points out that the original films were "25 or 30 percent" of what he intended.
Many changes were motivated by the vast improvements in CGI technology and other production techniques that occurred in the two decades after the original trilogy was produced. Other changes improved the cohesiveness among the films, and eliminated continuity errors between the original trilogy and the three prequels. However, opponents claim that these changes detract from the character arc of the films and tend to be more distracting than expedient.
Changes to Star Wars films after the theatrical release aren't always limited to the original trilogy. In the release of The Phantom Menace DVD, two deleted portions were either partially or completely restored.
Pre-Special Edition changes
Although not as obvious as the 1997 Special Edition re-release of the trilogy, there were still some alterations made between versions.
A New Hope
- The line "Episode IV: A NEW HOPE" was added to the opening crawl from 1981 forward.
- Alternate takes of C-3PO's dialog is used in the original mono sound version.
- The line "Close the blast doors!" is gone from the stereo sound releases.
- C-3PO's tractor beam line is also gone from the stereo sound versions.
- The line "Blast it Wedge, where are you?" from the original mono sound version was changed to "Blast it Biggs, where are you?" for the stereo sound releases.
- Beru Lars is voiced by a different actress.
The Empire Strikes Back
The 70mm version of the film was substantialy different from the 35mm version that was more widely seen.
- After the Probot lands and moves left, there is an optical wipe to the overhead shot of Luke on his Tauntaun.
- After Luke wanders through the snow and falls face down, there is an optical wipe to Han instead of a straight cut.
- The bacta tank scene starts on a close-up of Two-One-Bee and pans right to a closeup of Luke in the tank. It then cuts to FX-7 extending it's arm to the tank. There is no cut to Leia, Han and Threepio observing.
- In the snow battle scene, when Luke drops into the snow after throwing a charge into the Imperial walker, the AT-ST in the background has no atmospheric depth. It looks to close and small.
- In the Emperor scene, the hologram of the Emperor is already present in the first shot-it does not "tune in" gradually.
- The Imperial fleet establishing shot after the magic tree scene has a different TIE fighter sound effect.
- When Luke falls from Cloud City into the Millennium Falcon, the Falcon's radar dish is not added to the shot.
- The telepathy between Luke and Vader during the "Hyperspace" cue has straight cuts instead of quick dissolves.
- On Hoth, right after C-3PO tells R2 to "Switch off," R2 gives out a little 'blurp.'
- When Luke finally collapses in the snow, he lets out a grunt as he lands on his face.
- Han says "until I can get the shelter up" instead of "until I can get the shelter built."
- Luke says an additional "Ben... Dagobah..." just before Han says "and I thought they smelled bad on the outside."
- When C-3P0 tells Luke "It's so good to see you fully functional again," Luke replies "Thanks, Threepio."
- The line "Headquarters personnel report to Command Center" is repeated three times instead of two.
- The line "The first transport is away!" is said in a different voice altogether.
- When R2 is being loaded into Luke's X-Wing, C-3PO says the word "and" before saying "do take good care of yourself."
- Han's line "Transport, this is Solo. Better take off, I can't get to you. I'll get her out on the Falcon" is followed by, "Come on!"
- In the asteroid field, after C-3PO says "Oh, this is suicide." He says, "There's no where to go."
- Luke says "You're lucky to get out of there" instead of "You're lucky you don't taste very good."
- Yoda makes a frightened "Ehhhhh!" sound just before Luke says "Like we're being watched" and points his blaster at him.
- Yoda says the word "Run!" before "Yes. A Jedi's strength flows from the force." The following lines "But beware the dark side. Anger, fear, aggression. The dark side of the force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight" are also much louder and clearer.
- In Cloud City, after C-3PO says "That sounds like an R2 unit in there. I wonder if it..." he says "Hello?" only once instead of twice.
- Before C-3PO gets shot, a different voice says "Who are you?"
- While C-3PO is on Chewie's back when they enter the carbon freezing chamber, the line "Now remember, Chewbacca, you have a responsibility to me, so don't do anything foolish" is louder and heard more clearly.
- During the duel, when Luke knocks Vader off of the platform, Vader lets out an "ooooh!" instead of an "aaargh!"
- Lando's line at the end, "Luke, we're ready for takeoff." is a different take.
- In the final scene, there is no tracked music from "Yoda and the Force".
1997 Star Wars Trilogy Special Editions
Special coverage on CNN in 1997 notes that Lucas spent $10 million to rework his original 1977 film, which was roughly what it cost to film it originally. $3 million of that was spent on the audio track for the special edition. Lucas also spent $2.5 million each on Episodes V and VI.
The following is a partial list of changes:
A New Hope
- Additional dewbacks are visible as the Stormtroopers look for the missing robots. An Imperial transport can be seen taking off
- A revised Jawa sandcrawler
- A new look at Ben Kenobi's hut
- Mos Eisley is bigger and busier
- New aliens are seen in the Cantina
- A CGI version of Jabba the Hutt confronts Han Solo in the Millennium Falcon's launch bay
- Greedo now fires on Han before being shot in the cantina
- A new Mos Eisley scene of the Falcon taking off
- The shockwaves from the destruction of Alderaan and later of the Death Star are more pronounced
- C-3PO's line where he describes the tractor beam's power systems is put back in
- New superimposed shots of the Stormtroopers in the Death Star
- The flashes of blaster impacts on the Imperial officers were removed.
- While chasing Han and Chewbacca, one of the stormtroopers orders the others to close the blastdoors, adding some humor to when Han and Chewbacca jump through the doors as they close and another trooper says, "Open the blastdoors! Open the blastdoors!"
- A scene between Luke Skywalker and Biggs Darklighter, just before the Battle of Yavin
- New and additional dog fighting scenes during the battle with the Death Star
- The line "Blast it Biggs, where are you?" was changed to "Blast it Wedge, where are you?"
- After Red Leader's unsuccessful trench run, the line "He's on your tail!" was added to the film.
The Empire Strikes Back
- The opening battle sequence was cleaned up
- New scenes on Hoth with a fiercer-looking wampa ice creature
- New and additional shots of Cloud City
- Luke's line, "You're lucky you don't taste too good," after R2-D2 is spit out by a Dagobah swamp creature, is changed to "You were lucky to get out of there."
- Luke screams as he jumps off the platform in Cloud City (the scream is actually lifted from the Emperor's death scream from Return Of The Jedi)
- Darth Vader's line, "Bring my shuttle," is changed to "Alert my Star Destroyer to prepare for my arrival."
- A new scene with Darth Vader landing in the docking bay of his Star Destroyer, based on an outtake from Return Of The Jedi
Return Of The Jedi
- A new Jabba's Palace Band musical number, "Jedi Rocks" replaces "Lapti Nek"; Oola is now accompanied by three back-up dancers
- Boba Fett is briefly shown flirting with a dancer at Jabba's palace.
- Additional scenes on Tattooine of the Banthas before heading to the Pit of Carkoon.
- A revised version of the Sarlacc at the base of the Pit of Carkoon.
- In the original version, a flight of four TIE fighters appear from behind the camera flying towards the Death Star and disappear a second before the scene changes to the Emperor's arrival. This is corrected and the fighters continue heading toward the Death Star.
- At the end of the trilogy after the Empire is defeated, scenes of celebration on Endor, Bespin, Tatooine, and Coruscant are shown. The "Ewok celebration" song (often referred to as "Yub Nub") during this sequence has been replaced with an entirely new John Williams composition, "Victory Celebration".
2001 Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace DVD
- Podrace grid sequence is extended
- Air taxi sequence is reincorporated
2002 Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones DVD
- New dialogue added to the scene where Anakin confesses to the Tusken slaughter.
- Additional sparks and smoke have been added to Jango Fett's jetpack shortly before his death to better present its malfunction.
- After falling out of the gunship on Geonosis, a clone trooper asks if Padmé is all right. Her response of "Yes" has been changed to a more realistic groggy "Uh-huh."
- Anakin's mechanical hand now holds Padmé's hand during the closing wedding sequence.
2004 Star Wars Trilogy DVD
The 2004 DVD changes were made to make a better connection between the old and new trilogies. The following is a partial list of changes:
A New Hope
- When the Jawa Sandcrawler stops outside the Lars Homestead, C-3PO says "We stopped" before telling R2-D2 to wake up.
- Obi Wan Kenobi's scream to scare off the Sand People has been changed to a higher-pitched wail.
- A brief shot of Luke's landspeeder as it enters Mos Eisley carrying Luke, Ben Kenobi, and the droids has been redone
- The Mos Eisley/Greedo scene is redone yet again, so that Greedo and Han shoot at almost the exact same moment, but Greedo is still fractionally ahead.
- An improved CGI version of Jabba the Hutt now confronts Han Solo in the scene added to the 1997 re-release.
- When the two stormtroopers exit the Millennium Falcon, one of them says, "There's no one here."
- The English writing in the Death Star tractor beam control panel is changed to the standard Star Wars "foreign" (Aurabesh) writing
- An audible bump was added the infamous gaff where the one screen-right shacks his head on the door-frame when the stormtroopers break into the control room. This mistake had been hinted at in Episode II.
- Lightsabers now glow similarly to the other episodes (NOTE: In Luke's training on the Millennium Falcon, the lightsaber is green instead of blue)
- John Williams' score has been quieted or eliminated from some portions of the Battle of Yavin scene. The left and right rear channels of the score have also been swapped.
- The line "Blast it Wedge, where are you?" was changed back to "Blast it Biggs, where are you?"
- The "He's on you tail!" that was added for the 1997 Special Edition was removed.
The Empire Strikes Back
- In a scene where Darth Vader speaks to the Emperor via hologram, the Emperor is now Palpatine as portrayed by Ian McDiarmid (in the original film and the Special Edition, an unidentified actress in heavy makeup portrayed the Emperor, whose voice was dubbed in by Clive Revill.) A few lines of new dialogue have been added to this scene as well, in which Palpatine informs Vader that their new enemy is "the offspring of Anakin Skywalker."
- The four lines spoken by Boba Fett are now in the voice of Temuera Morrison, the actor who played Jango Fett (Boba Fett's clone "father")
- In both the original and Special Edition film, during the scene in which Han is lowered into the carbon-freezing chamber, a wardrobe blooper has him wearing his blue jacket during one shot. The jacket has been digitally erased in this release.
- The tracked Emperor death scream by Luke Skywalker introduced in the 1997 re-release was removed
- In the original and special edition, when Darth Vader asks if the Falcon's hyperdrive is deactivated, Admiral Piett's rank plaque and code cylinders are on the wrong side of his uniform (the plaque is suppose to be on the left side of his tunic, but it was on his right side). This is corrected and Piett has the correct rank placement on his uniform.
Return Of The Jedi
- The matte lines on the rancor have been further altered and the effect is now more realistic.
- Boba Fett now laughs along with Jabba the Hutt while Luke fights the rancor, matching his laugh from Attack of the Clones.
- In Darth Vader's final scene, when he is not wearing his helmet, the eyebrows of actor Sebastian Shaw have been removed. His eyes have also been changed to blue, to better resemble the Anakin portrayed by Hayden Christensen in the prequel trilogy.
- Another scene of celebration, this one on Naboo, is shown after the Empire is defeated. A Gungan can be heard saying "Wesa free!"
- In the final scene where the spirits of Anakin Skywalker, Obi Wan Kenobi, and Yoda appear to Luke, Anakin is now played by Hayden Christensen rather than Sebastian Shaw
- In the Coruscant celebration scene, the Galatic Senate and Jedi Temple have been added in the background.
Note that in all three films, the ending credits have remained unchanged from the Special Edition releases in 1997. Thus, they do not reflect such changes as Ian McDiarmid's Emperor in The Empire Strikes Back or Hayden Christensen's Anakin in Return of the Jedi.
Deleted scenes from Star Wars
This is a partial list of scenes that weren't in any film version of the original trilogy.
A New Hope
- Luke visits his friends at Anchorhead. He says he saw a space battle (between the Devastator and the blockade runner Tantive IV) with a telescope to his friends. However, the battle is already over and his friends do not believe him.
- Biggs tells Luke he wants to defect to the Rebels.
The Empire Strikes Back
- While fleeing Imperial troops, Han suggests they take a shortcut through a room that has a sign on it. Leia tells him "that's where they keep those creatures" (the wampas). They run off and C-3PO tears off the warning sign, hoping the troops will mistake it for another room.
Return of the Jedi
- Darth Vader uses his Force choke-hold on an Imperial officer to get into the Emperor's throne room.
- Right after Jabba's Sail Barge blows up, Luke, Han, Leia, Lando, and the droids go back to the Millennium Falcon and Luke's X-Wing (both of which are in the middle of a sand storm). Han thanks Luke for saving him and Luke explains to his friends that he has to go back to Dagobah.
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