Star Wars , the eponymous, classic Sci-fi film, has many barely countable amounts of iterations and versions since 1977, so you would think that by now it has journeyed into every region of the known world. However, there are still countries, far, far, away that have not had the joy of Stars Wars in any kind of way, such as China. The Inquisitr did report on the anniversary of the Episode IV: A New Hope that Star Wars franchise was on a journey to the Shanghai International Film Festival this year.
According to Deadline, it appears the Star Wars franchise finally utilized light speed in its trip to China. Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace ; Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones ; Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith ; Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope ; Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back ; and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi films will make their premiere in China, but will they appear in correct order or original order? There has been no reports or confirmations on this.
This is not the first time Star Wars has appeared in the country, but besides bootlegs, this will be the official premiere that the country never had.
As Comicbook points out, China’s history in the 70s did exactly lend itself to premiering a film that was thought to not even make it at the box office period. Walt Disney Studios China President Kerwin Lo sees the Star Wars films premiering at the film festival a good move to help promote Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which will be released in December, 2015.
“This will be the first-ever theatrical screening of the original trilogy in China.The huge buzz and excitement generated is going to be great for the Star Wars franchise and the upcoming “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
This certainly does make sense from a marketing perspective, especially since the Disney seems to be placing most of their eggs in the Star Wars basket. With the move into the Chinese region, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, many fans and Disney are probably curious as to whether or not this will spark another renaissance for the franchise. Sadly, for Star Wars fans, the prequel films did not exactly accomplish that.
Star Wars fans have played the waiting game, and they certainly are dedicated. Hopefully, the Chinese Walt Disney Studios, American, other countries, and everyone involved in the new franchise, will respect the fans. Obviously, without the fans, there are no films or market for them.
[Images Via Wikimedia Commons]
