Star Wars Blu-Rays Subjected To More George Lucas Tinkering

Star Wars fans are divided into two camps: The silent, unquestioning fans who swallow up anything related to the franchise, and the vocal, rage-filled sorts who fume at the endless tinkering to which George Lucas subjects his classics. On the verge of the debut of the original trilogy and prequels on Blu-ray, the latter group has new reason to complain because Lucas has reportedly altered key scenes.

The New York Times and CNET detail some of the known changes to the films, due out on Blu-ray Sept. 16.

In Return of the Jedi, Darth Vader now screams “Noooo!” as he offs the Emperor, whereas in previous versions he was silent:

In the original Star Wars, now Obi-Wan goes a little more wild than before when attempting to scare off Tusken Raiders:

Also, the puppet Yoda in The Phantom Menace has now reportedly been swapped out for a CGI version, and Ewoks in Return of the Jedi now blink due to computerized touch-ups.

The angry mobs are especially bitter because Lucas isn’t releasing the original cuts of the films alongside the tweaked versions.

Lucasfilm changes original Star Wars trilogy again [CNET]

Lucasfilm Confirms Change to Blu-ray Release of ‘Return of the Jedi’ [The New York Times]

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