Star Wars theatrical versions not coming in 2015 — Page 4

moviefreakedmind said:

I don't understand why anyone other than an overly-obsessive collector would buy the steelbooks. I would imagine most people who want to own the films on blu ray have already purchased the current incarnations by now. The new artwork isn't even very appealing (at least not in my opinion), and if you only want the original trilogy regardless of whether it's the special edition then you already have had the ability to buy the OT on blu ray separate from the PT. 64% of the very few reviews of the OT steelbooks are 1 star on Amazon which is good. Hopefully they'll get the message with this release. 

 Well, I mean they're not out yet, so you can't really review them yet.

doubleofive said:

This is just a money grab by Fox, it is not representative of Disney's plans.

The press release did mention Disney. Maybe that's only because they own Lucasfilm now?

You have to wonder whether Fox needed Disney's permission at all since the disc content itself hasn't changed, only the packaging and the fact they're being made available individually this time.

Fang Zei said:

doubleofive said:

This is just a money grab by Fox, it is not representative of Disney's plans.

The press release did mention Disney. Maybe that's only because they own Lucasfilm now?

You have to wonder whether Fox needed Disney's permission at all since the disc content itself hasn't changed, only the packaging and the fact they're being made available individually this time.

 Right. It would be nice to know the details of Fox and Disney's deal regarding home video releases. Lots of speculation, but we really don't know which of them needs to seek the other's approval or how it all works. Can Fox just send a memo to Disney stating "We changed the artwork, prepare yourselves for more dollars." or could Disney say, "We spent all the time and money restoring the original trilogy. Enjoy your cut of the profits for doing nothing. You're welcome."? 

And when it comes to the OOT, obviously we don't know if either or both companies have contracts with George stating what they're allowed to do.

That's why I'm actually inclined to believe Devin Faraci when he says that Fox doesn't feel comfortable releasing the original versions while George is still alive.

Fang Zei said:

That's why I'm actually inclined to believe Devin Faraci when he says that Fox doesn't feel comfortable releasing the original versions while George is still alive.

 Watching Disney's celebration of George at D23 (which was a very nice, if incestuous at this point, gesture) had me thinking that there's absolutely no way they're going to release the OOT at this point in time. They're still celebrating and thanking the guy, and they probably will be for some time. 

Watching and reading things that have mostly come from JJ's mouth lately, it has become easy to feel like Lucasfilm and Disney are on our side. Even Kathleen keeps mentions of George fairly brief (generally praising the wonderful universe he has created that they get to explore). Not because they aren't grateful to him. But because they want to avoid the direct questions of "Why don't you respect the prequels and why aren't you using anything from them?" and "Why did you discard and/or set fire to George's VII-IX outlines?".

Disney has chosen good decisions over George's Ego so far. And I'm sure they'll continue to. But if George still sees releasing the OOT as a huge middle finger, I think they'll wait. Not necessarily until he's gone, but perhaps once (if) Disney convinces everyone that the franchise is in excellent hands with VII and so forth. That is, assuming they aren't contractually unable to release it. Could that even be a thing if they own the rights?.

Yeah I could definitely agree to the idea of hesitation out of loyalty to Lucas. Without him Disney wouldn't be banking in on this franchise to begin with would they?? Same with Fox if they are afraid to release the originals. You have to wonder though. Is it part of a bigger plan?? I think it's fair to say that both camps realize that releasing the original versions would be the best move if they wish to cash in more on the original movies. However, could it be part of something that they think will pay off more?? The fact they're releasing the same damn Blurays again within 5 years since its initial release shows they're willing to cash in on anything. So they probably know they want something that EVERYONE will buy including those who already own the current BluRays. So simply releasing the original versions wouldn't be enough. What else do we get?? '97 SE? '11 SE? A new SE??? And of course there's still the matter of Fox and Disney reaching a deal over video releases. Just an interesting theory.

Or maybe Disney just don't give a f**k

crissrudd4554 said:

Yeah I could definitely agree to the idea of hesitation out of loyalty to Lucas. Without him Disney wouldn't be banking in on this franchise to begin with would they?? Same with Fox if they are afraid to release the originals. You have to wonder though. Is it part of a bigger plan?? I think it's fair to say that both camps realize that releasing the original versions would be the best move if they wish to cash in more on the original movies. However, could it be part of something that they think will pay off more?? The fact they're releasing the same damn Blurays again within 5 years since its initial release shows they're willing to cash in on anything. So they probably know they want something that EVERYONE will buy including those who already own the current BluRays. So simply releasing the original versions wouldn't be enough. What else do we get?? '97 SE? '11 SE? A new SE??? And of course there's still the matter of Fox and Disney reaching a deal over video releases. Just an interesting theory.

I'd argue that the inclusion of the original versions alone would be more than enough of a selling point, but I'd gladly buy the ultimate set a la Blade Runner with the '97 version thrown in as well.

I suspect there will be a new SE released at some point, as that's what RMW's 4k "restoration" most likely was/is. Even with only four months to go, I still wouldn't be surprised to hear about the big theater chains like AMC doing all day 3D marathons on December 17th and having it turn out to be the debut of the new SE.

Should a hypothetical "ultimate" bd set ever happen, complete with the new SE, I doubt they'd bother including the '11 or '04 versions. It would be highly redundant in the face of the new version which would probably replicate most of those changes anyway. Rumor is that the most notorious '97 change, Greedo shooting first, has actually been switched back to its original 1977 form in the 4k SE, giving it a kind of "final cut" status.

If anything, the ticking clock of Fox completely losing their rights to 5/6 of the saga just five years from now should actually be motivation for them to make whatever deals they need to with Disney and just get a restored OOT (and maybe the OPT as well?) on the shelves so they can cash in on it.

I suspect there will be a new SE released at some point, as that's what RMW's 4k "restoration" most likely was/is. Even with only four months to go, I still wouldn't be surprised to hear about the big theater chains like AMC doing all day 3D marathons on December 17th and having it turn out to be the debut of the new SE.

I think it has been established that at least some of what was shown was a 97SE restoration. No way of knowing whether they plan on releasing the 97SE (seems unlikely), or De/Respecialize it into pre/post 1997 versions. Or, if they were going for an ultimate BD set, if it was transferred in parallel with a pre-1997 version (unrealistically optimistic, but not impossible).

Should a hypothetical "ultimate" bd set ever happen, complete with the new SE, I doubt they'd bother including the '11 or '04 versions. It would be highly redundant in the face of the new version which would probably replicate most of those changes anyway. 

It would really only be the cost of the discs holding them back on this one. It would be trivial to include the 2011 with branching to 2004. Depends how impressive they would want to make the hypothetical ultimate set, which we have no reason to think they will make anyway.

Rumor is that the most notorious '97 change, Greedo shooting first, has actually been switched back to its original 1977 form in the 4k SE, giving it a kind of "final cut" status.

I have no faith at all in this rumor. The single person who said this said it would be the case for the previous digital release, and then said "oops I mean it's a later release probably" (paraphrased). They had access to a release that's highly under wraps and had no idea what they were watching? Probably just a fan edit or lie.

It's great that Disney is showing public displays of respect and reverence towards the man that started it all, but I don't believe for one minute that they'll pass up the chance to make a great deal of money from releasing the theatrical editions. It will happen. It's just a matter of when. 

It was the same thing when Tron Legacy came out.

They intentionally let the dvd of the original go out of print and even requested that it be taken off the shelves several months prior to the sequel's release. Some people speculated that Disney was afraid people would see the original and get turned off by it enough to skip seeing the sequel in theaters.

You can buy tron SE and tron legacy in a double box set on DVD.

You can now, yes, of course.

Tron '82 made its blu-Ray debut day and date with Legacy.

Dare I get my hopes up for a surprise OOT blu-Ray next Spring to coincide with TFA?

In response to the original question, I just think an upscaled GOUT - though it would have color and contrast closer to the original look - would have nowhere near the actual detail of the 2011 blu-Ray. Even excessively DNR'd blu-rays would still have more detail than an upscaled GOUT. For that reason alone, it's not surprising that the people in charge haven't repackaged it in any form with the 2011 transfers.

They're not interested in consolation prizes. I agree with the theory that Disney is simply driving up demand for a restoration by withholding the unaltered versions.

At least, that's what I hope is going on.

We sense something. A presence not felt since.....

Hate to be a wet blanket here, but if George is so crazy as to not give the Library of Congress a copy of SW, then I agree that it's extremely likely that a caveat of his disney deal was that the OOT stays dead and gone.

swagmasta69 said:

Hate to be a wet blanket here, but if George is so crazy as to not give the Library of Congress a copy of SW, then I agree that it's extremely likely that a caveat of his disney deal was that the OOT stays dead and gone.

 I don't doubt it's something he wanted. Disney's four billion dollars might have had some sway, though.

Or maybe he simply doesn't want the original versions restored until he no longer has to be around to see it happen?

Although I don't know what's weirder, demanding the OOT stay locked away until he's dead or demanding it stay locked away forever.

Fang Zei said:

Although I don't know what's weirder, demanding the OOT stay locked away until he's dead or demanding it stay locked away forever.

 I feel like once he's dead that Disney, being the awful (or in this case, great) company that they are, will release the OOT no matter what the contract said.

Even the Lucas estate couldn't beat Disney in court.

moviefreakedmind said:

By the way, as terrible as the GOUT was, he did allow the OOT to be made available in a large-scale release on DVD. If he truly still wanted all copies of the OOT to deteriorate and be lost forever, he simply would not have released those bonus discs.

 Very good point