One of the most enduring debates in the "Star Wars" universe has been over whether or not Han Solo shot Greedo first in "Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope." In the original theatrical version, the editing seemed to suggest that Han beat Greedo to the punch, but Lucas, forever tinkering with his "Star Wars" movies, later re-cut the scene to indicate that Greedo pulled the trigger first. It’s a change that still rankles fans, but Lucas has long defended his alteration.
"…what I did was try to clean up the confusion, but obviously it upset people because they wanted Solo [who seemed to be the one who shot first in the original] to be a cold-blooded killer, but he actually isn’t," Lucas explained in 2012. "It had been done in all close-ups and it was confusing about who did what to whom. I put a little wider shot in there that made it clear that Greedo is the one who shot first, but everyone wanted to think that Han shot first, because they wanted to think that he actually just gunned him down."
The recent digital release has kept this change intact, and as for Harrison Ford, don’t ask him about his thoughts on it. "I don’t [k]now and I don’t care," he said last year. However, fans now have a new piece of evidence to consider.
CBC reports that in the archives of the University of New Brunswick library, the original script of "Star Wars" has been discovered. How original? Dated March 15, 1976 (a little more than year before the movie opened), this apparent fan-made replica of the fourth draft of the script, refers to the story as "Saga I" and the film’s hero was named Luke Starkiller. And there’s another crucial difference.
"I’ll tell you one thing, right now. Based on the script, I can tell you 100 per cent, Han shot first," says librarian Kristian Brown.
How the script, which contains different character descriptions and scenes that didn’t make the final film, ended up in New Brunswick isn’t clear, but the Han-shot-first side of the argument just got another boost.
Makes no difference who shot first Greedo DREW first…Han actually gets points for acing a locked n cocked gunfighter in a face to face fight..
Han shooting first was important to Solo\’s character arc in the original film. When I first saw it, in the theater at 13, you didn\’ know if this Solo guy would turn out to be a friend, or a plot twist (a betrayer). By showing he could be coldly pragmatic, shooting first, you could believe that this was a guy who could take his reward and leave before the final battle. There was no guarantee that he would return in such dramatic fashion, or at all. "Come on, kid. Let\’s blow this thing and go home" wasn\’t just a "feel good" moment — it was a surprise, and an indication of change in Han Solo\’s character.
It\’s not an original script. According to the original news story, it\’s a fan copy of the original that they sold at conventions. That would explain how it was also sold on Pawn Stars.
The writer also left out this important piece of info. It\’s not an original script:
"Lucasfilm Publicity said it looked to be a copy of the real, early script, but it appeared to be a "fan-made" replica version of the sort once sold at conventions. "
Lucas is just an idiot. Han shot first and no one ever beleived he didnt. Well, no one aside from Lucas.
Ronjammin: It\’s most likely the same script as shown in Pawn Stars. That show loan most of the stuff they buy or look at anyway, it\’s just an entertainment shown, not a reallity show as some may think (It was originally). And they said that in an earlier draft, not the fourth one, Luke was a woman.
Lucas has been telling these sorts of lies for decades now. He changes the canon, and then retroactively pretends it was intended that way all along. (If Darth Vader was always the universe\’s second most-powerful Sith Lord after Palpatine, why in hell is he taking orders from Peter Cushing throughout the first movie?!?) Han clearly shoots first in the original edition — a point made glaringly obvious by the ham-fisted post-production insertion of Greedo\’s laser blast (missing from the original film).
Now that Disney owns these properties and Lucas is out of the picture, one hopes they\’ll finally give fans what they\’ve always wanted: a letterboxed HD set of the original trilogy in its original form.
"it upset people because they wanted Solo to be a cold-blooded killer, but he actually isn’t". Nobody wanted that…. it was ridiculous for Lucas to even suggest. Greedo was a bounty hunter with a gun pointed at Han and threatened to kill him. All Han did was defend himself by not waiting to get shot in the face. No one would call that being a cold-blooded killer.
Didn\’t some guy bring in the same script to PAWN STARS? saw it on an episode last week, could have sworn it was the fourth edition with STARKILLER in it.. who was a female. But the one brought in was closer to the release date.. don\’t quote me on this!
There is no long ranging debate about whether he shot first. There is 0% debate about that. The debate is why Lucas decided to change it for the re-releases. Don\’t be dumb, Mr. Writer. You and I both know there is no debate. So why phrase a false question>
"I can tell you 100 per cent, Han shot first." I can tell you the same thing. I saw the original movie with my own two eyes.