Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy has reassured Star Wars fans who were left concerned that an incredibly rare screening of A New Hope’s first ever cut had not been officially sanctioned.
Star Wars purists expressed confusion after the BFI announced the screening earlier this year, highlighting that writer-director George Lucas has repeatedly expressed his disdain for this particular version cut over the years.
Lucas has made several edits to the blockbuster since it was first released in 1977 – and the print shown by the BFI predated any of the filmmaker’s preferred changes. In 2004, Lucas said of his edits to Associated Press: “I’m sorry you saw half a completed film and fell in love with it, but I want it to be the way I want it to be.”
The original version of the film is so rare that the opening crawl doesn’t even have the film’s renowned subtitle, Episode IV: A New Hope, and also features a different cut of the Mos Eisley cantina scene that sees Han Solo (Harrison Ford) shoot bounty hunter Greedo.
In a later cut, Lucas infamously switched it so that, rather than Han shooting Greedo first, the bounty hunter is the one to fire at Han before Ford’s character kills him. The scene was changed to exonerate Han of all wrongdoing, but many fans complained that the edit stripped Han of his roguish character streak.
The BFI’s announcement of the screening, which kicked off the second Film on Film festival on Thursday (12 June), was immediately followed by Reddit threads created by die-hard fans claiming the organisation could not have received the approval of Lucasfilm and Disney.
To ease this fan concern, Lucasfilm president Kennedy introduced the screening, which took place at BFI Southbank, and “legitimised” the fact it was being shown. “I’m here to make sure you don’t think this is an illegal screening,” she said to laughter from the crowd.
BFI’s Chief Executive Ben Roberts explained that he had contacted Kennedy when the BFI came across the print in their archives, but admitted he “wasn’t really sure we were able to show it” due to Lucas’s tinkering over the years. He said it was a “miracle” the print was in a condition to be screened.
Kennedy expressed surprise at the print’s existence, stating there is “incredible folklore” surrounding it.
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“Even when I came into the company [in 2012], there was endless conversation about where everything was and what was, in fact, the first print – and it’s quite remarkable: what you’re gonna see is in fact the first print. I’m not even sure there’s another one quite like it. It’s that rare.”
She continued: “It’s quite remarkable to be able to experience this exactly the way it was in 1977. This is really special.”
Kennedy said the original Star Wars film is “the gold standard” when it comes to creating new projects set in the franchise’s universe.
“I would say this is the film everyone starts with when we start talking about story, George’s intent and what it is we’re trying to build off of,” she told the crowd.
She credited acclaimed spin-off series Andor with “expanding genres” when it comes to Star Wars projects, and shared a hint of what to expect in the future.
“I really think that now we’re in a position where it’s broadened the possibility of stories and filmmakers we can bring in to tell stories that mean something to them – it doesn’t necessarily have to connect to every little thing thats been done in Star Wars; it can actually be a standalone story that then builds into many many other stories.”
Kennedy said she was in London ahead of new film Starfighter, starring Ryan Gosling, which starts shooting in September. “It’s gonna be pretty big,” she teased.
The BFI Film on Film strand concludes with a rare screening of the first episode of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s Twin Peaks, which will be introduced by lead star Kyle MacLachlan.
Other films that will be screened at the festival include Stanley Kubrick films The Killing (1956) and 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).
