Consider this a rumor but one that seems highly likely to be true. Disney and Lucasfilm, riding high on the recently commenced filming of the latest STAR WARS movie, EPISODE VII, are planning to re-release the original trilogy in their unaltered glory, according to an intercepted email. Bleeding Cool claims the email indicates a VOD and Blu-ray re-issue of the STAR WARS trilogy, not the prequels, and not including any of George Lucas‘ Special Edition changes.
Fans have been clamoring for an HD edition of the Original Trilogy for years. This would remove the “Noooo!” from RETURN OF THE JEDI, the changed Force Ghost of Anakin, and Greedo shooting first, then slightly second. By not making these a theatrical release, Disney is likely catering to fans of the series, the group who they most desperately needed in their favor leading to J.J. Abrams‘ first entry in the new trilogy.
Which brings up a second rumor. Some are theorizing that Disney may be shying away from the Prequel Trilogy to the point of considering them part of the Legends universe and not the official canon. Statements from Lucasfilm have continually stated that the six feature films are the key canon, so I would highly doubt they would separate Lucas’ prequels from the official timeline. However, I would not doubt that Disney is going to do everything they can to focus on the Original Trilogy and the Sequel Trilogy while ignoring the Prequels as much as they can.
STAR WARS: EPISODE VII hits theaters on December 18, 2015.