Star Wars’ George Lucas Defends Controversial Changes & CGI in Special Editions

(Photo Credit: 20th Century Fox)

George Lucas has defended the various changes he made to Star Wars. The director has touched up his older films after they have finished their complete theatrical runs, explaining that movies are often “yanked” from directors before they feel finished.

As Lucas revealed, fans were upset at the changes that were made. However, Lucas believed that there was nothing wrong with doing so, given that even fans of the movie have made alternative cuts for themselves.

Speaking about the changes in an exclusive CBS Sunday Morning interview, Lucas said, “Most movies aren’t finished; they’re simply yanked out of your hands and put in the theaters. So you’re always saying. ‘Oh, I wish I could have just finished that one piece of thing.’ But it’s not that way. You have a deadline; you’ve got to make the deadline.” He continued, “But then I went back, after Star Wars, and redid all the movies, in terms of finishing them. So that they’re actually finished.”

However, there was a massive outcry when Lucas came out with his newer versions of Star Wars. George Lucas felt that his making changes was completely justified. He stated, “A lot of people got upset about that, because they said, ‘You’re not allowed to do that.’ I said, ‘Fans are doing that. They’re making alternate versions and all kinds of stuff.'”

(Photo Credit: 20th Century Fox)

Why were the changes in the special editions of the Star Wars trilogy so controversial?

While the 1997 Special Edition of A New Hope was generally well received by critics and audiences, one change became particularly controversial among fans. The controversy centered on who shot first: Han Solo or the bounty hunter Greedo.

In the 1977 cut of the film, Han shot at Greedo first before the latter had the chance to fire his weapon. However, in the Special Edition, Greedo indeed shoots first, with Han only retaliating with his weapon.

The change sparked debate over how Han Solo’s character should be interpreted. There are those who still hold that the 1977 version of Han Solo is the quintessential version of the character.

The original version is often interpreted as making Han appear more willing to shoot first, while the revised scene presents him as reacting to Greedo’s attack. The revised version presents Han as more reactive, as he does not fire until after Greedo shoots.

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Originally reported on SuperHeroHype.com.

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