Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy has personally introduced a unique showing of the first print of Star Wars from 1977. George Lucas always considered the Star Wars movies something of a work in progress; he made countless changes to them over the decades, most notably in the Star Wars Special Editions. To the surprise and delight of the fandom, though, the so-called “first print” of the very first Star Wars movie has just been aired at the BFI Film on Film Festival in the U.K.

The showing was introduced by Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy herself, who had this to say:

“I came to legitimize them, make sure that you don’t think this is an illegal screening… [There’s incredible folklore around this print.] I have to say that even when I came into the company, there was always conversation about where everything was, and what was in fact the first print. It’s quite remarkable. What you’re going to see is in fact the first print, and I’m not sure there’s another one quite like it. It’s that are.

There’s so much tinkering that’s gone on over the years, the things that George [Lucas] decided, ‘Uh-uh’… and then everybody kind of lost track of what it was.”

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Why The “First Print” Of Star Wars Is So Unusual

A True Moment In Star Wars History

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This is an unforgettable moment in Star Wars history. As Kennedy alluded, George Lucas made substantial changes to the original Star Wars movie over the years, beginning with the decision to reтιтle it “A New Hope” and brand it “Episode IV” (changes made shortly before the release of The Empire Strikes Back. He went to great lengths to ensure viewers could only enjoy the story he wanted to tell, complete with all the changes, and we didn’t think the first print existed.

It seems, incredibly, the BFI Archives contained the first print of the very first Star Wars movie, dating all the way back to 1977. The BFI wisely reached out to Lucasfilm, who agreed to support this showing. The fortunate few who attended were able to enjoy Star Wars as it originally was – unedited and unchanged. It’s almost impossible to overestimate how significant a moment this is.

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I grew up before the Special Editions, which means I have a strange relationship with those releases; there are subtle details that just feel slightly wrong to me, because they don’t quite chime with my deepest memories. But even I never saw anything like this first print, which predates Lucas’ reтιтling Star Wars to A New Hope. I can’t pretend I’m not envious of the fortunate BFI members who got to experience this.

That said, I do find it incredible that the first print still exists. Suddenly a possibility I never imagined has become very real; would it actually be possible for Lucasfilm to release this version of Star Wars? I suspect it isn’t likely – I doubt Lucas himself would approve, so Lucasfilm will probably choose not to. Still, I can dream.