The Original STAR WARS and STAR WARS: STARFIGHTER Are Getting Epic IMAX 70mm Releases
Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: Starfighter and the 50th anniversary re-release of Star Wars: A New Hope are both getting IMAX 70mm presentations, giving fans a great reason to make the trip to one of the select theaters capable of projecting the massive film format.
This will also mark the first time the Star Wars franchise has been specifically presented in IMAX 70mm.
The celebration kicks off February 19, 2027, when the original Star Wars returns to theaters for its 50th anniversary. The George Lucas-directed 1977 classic has never been released in IMAX before, either digitally or on film, so seeing those opening words disappear into space before a Star Destroyer fills an enormous IMAX screen should be one hell of a movie going experience!
A few months later, Star Wars: Starfighter arrives on May 28, 2027, landing during the 50th anniversary weekend of the original film.
The new standalone adventure comes from director and producer Shawn Levy, whose credits include Deadpool & Wolverine and Stranger Things.
Ryan Gosling stars as Kade Auberon, a cynical rogue whose mysterious past catches up with him and sends him racing across the galaxy on a dangerous adventure that puts him on a collision course with destiny.
Starfighter was shot with IMAX-certified cameras as a Filmed For IMAX production. The movie will then be converted to IMAX 70mm film prints for screenings at a select number of IMAX film locations.
Gosling is joined by Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings, Flynn Gray, and Amy Adams. Jonathan Tropper wrote the screenplay, with Levy and Kathleen Kennedy producing.
IMAX 70mm uses 18K film and traces back to the large-format company’s beginnings 60 years ago. The format remains extremely rare, with only a handful of cinemas around the world equipped to present movies this way, which should make these screenings genuine destination events for Star Wars fans.
Lucas’ 1977 movie helped redefine what audiences expected from big-screen science fiction, and getting to see it projected on a gigantic IMAX screen for the first time sounds awesome. The scale of the Star Destroyers, the Death Star attack, the dogfights, John Williams’ score blasting through an IMAX theater... yeah, that’s gonna be cool.
Between the February re-release of Star Wars and the May debut of Star Wars: Starfighter, 2027 is shaping up to be a great year to watch Star Wars the way it deserves to be seen!