The original 1977 Star Wars returns to theaters for a "once-in-a-generation event" to remind everyone who shot first

Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia, and Harrison Ford as Han Solo
(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

These are the droids you're looking for, actually. Star Wars, in all of its original 1977 glory, is headed to theaters for its 50th anniversary.

Sadly, this does mean that we'll have to wait two years, given that the release date is on February 19, 2027. This will also be the first time that the original cut of Star Wars has been shown in a theater in nearly 47 years. You read that right. Gizmodo also reports that the film may be coming to IMAX theaters as well, though this hasn't been officially confirmed by Disney or Lucasfilm.

Perhaps the most exciting thing, at least for me, is the fact that we will see Han shoot first (because he did!) – and "Maclunkey!" will be no more. In the original cut, Han Solo (Harrison Ford) shoots Greedo dead, point-blank. This was retconned by George Lucas himself, however, in 1997, where the scene is altered to give Han some actual motivation for murder i.e., Greedo shooting first.

Lauren Milici
Senior Entertainment Writer

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ based in New York City. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.

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