From Newsgroup: alt.fan.starwars


Disney is rumouredly planning to re-re-re-release all 10 of the current
Star Wars live-action movies on Blu-ray / Digital next month, all with matching cover styles. Of course, they can then re-re-re-RE-release
them all again early next year after Episode IX, possibly alongside 4K releases.


From TheDigitalBits.com ...

The Star Wars Saga is almost certainly coming to 4K Ultra HD in 2020
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This is something we've been saying here at The Bits for quite a
while now, and those titles have been listed in our 4K Ultra HD
Release List here for several months. This is obviously not yet
official, but I think it IS further evidence of the truth of next
year's 4K plans: Information has begun to leak from retailers
(including cover artwork) that all 10 of the existing Star Wars
films are going to be re-issued on regular Blu-ray in September (yes,
next month) and I'd bet the official announcement is due any day now
(possibly at the D23 Expo in a couple weeks). This would indicate
that Disney is taking one last bite at the apple on regular Blu-ray
with these films. And per the studio's Marvel strategy, all 10 of the
films are being released with brand new matching cover artwork.
Here's at look at that leaked artwork (and a shout-out is due here to
Jordan Maison, who appears to have spotted them in the wild first)...

DVD Covers:

- Episode I
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode1-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode II
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode2-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode III
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode3-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Solo
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-solo-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Rogue One
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-rogue-one-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode IV
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode4-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode V
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode5-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode VI
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode6-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode VII
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode7-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

- Episode VIII
<http://www.theforce.net/2019/star-wars-episode8-blu-ray-cover-tn.jpg>

You probably know what I'm about to say: Given all of the above, I'd
bet my left arm at this point that Disney is going to release all of
these films in 4K Ultra HD next year, probably early in the year
timed to the home video release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,
with this same cover artwork.

Now, before you all start bombarding me with questions like, "Are
they going to include the original theatrical versions?!" take a
deep breath, folks. I don't know. None of this is official yet. And
if I were you, I would assume not so you don't start getting your
hopes up. I've seen a bit of speculation online to suggest that
there are plans to include the theatrical cuts of the original three
films in 4K, but history suggests you should treat this with a grain
of salt.

That said, it's certainly possible. Lucasfilm DID allow the Academy
to show a rare 70 mm print of the original version of Star Wars (1977)
back in June... and even a week before that was announced it would
have seemed inconceivable. So it's possible there's been a softening
by George Lucas and that Disney does have plans to include those
versions in any 4K release. I've said MANY times here at The Bits in
recent years that - at some point - Disney would absolutely release
those versions. The studio simply knows too well how badly fans want
them and how much money they could make by including them. Could it
happen with a 4K release next year? I don't know and I think it would
be safer to assume not and allow ourselves to be surprised.

But I do feel pretty confident in saying that the Star Wars films are
coming to 4K in 2020 in one form or another - Disney is just being way
to aggressive in releasing the entire MCU and Pixar catalogs on the
format this year. Once they're done with those (and they will be in a
few months), Star Wars is the only major franchise they won't yet have
exploited fully in 4K (Solo and The Last Jedi aside). And the release
of the final film in the current Star Wars saga, The Rise of Skywalker,
is the obvious time to do it.


<http://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/080819-1500>


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