We always circle back to this argument and the conclusion is always the same: there’s far less incentive for Disney to release the unaltered original trilogy than fans estimate (the home video market is effectively dead and the number of people who know or care enough to seek out the original versions of these movies are diminishing by the day). Combine that with an internal reluctance at Lucasfilm to go against Lucas’s wishes for these movies, and there’s not really any plausible reality in which these movies are released anytime soon.

The good news, though, is projects like Despecialized and 4K77 exist and account for virtually every taste. Want something that feels like a modern home video release? Despecialized’s got you. Want a more true, warts-and-all preservation? Great! There’s 4K77. Sure, an official release would be nice, but I suspect I’d still opt for 4K77 even in that hypothetical scenario because I just don’t see Disney offering up a true preservation like that to modern audiences.

Anyway, as for Verta, do we have receipts that he ever actually met with Disney/Fox? Wouldn’t be the first time he’s, uh, shall we say, told stories from “a certain point of view.”