I was trying to find an interview with George that was in Empire magazine somewhere in the early 2000s. THX had just been released on DVD so it was a tie-in piece. So like, let’s say 2004. The interviewer asked him about the new changes to the film and the quote I want to say was something like…
“Oh it’s like Star Wars. There is no original version”.
Of course I could be mistaken and this is probably paraphrasing without remembering the actual question the journalist posed but the answer he gave stuck in my brain. I don’t own any copies of this magazine any more and I don’t think there’s a transcript online.
Anyway instead I found this interview where he claims that it would cost millions to restore a film that multiple fans have recreated with nothing but their own spare time.
https://www.today.com/popculture/lucas-talks-star-wars-trilogy-returns-wbna6011380