Original Star Wars and Starfighter Will Both Screen in IMAX 70mm in 2027
Lucasfilm's 50th-anniversary plans give the 1977 original its first IMAX presentation in February, followed by Shawn Levy's Starfighter in May.
Quick read: In a September 8 announcement, Lucasfilm confirmed that the original 1977 Star Wars will reach IMAX for the first time on February 19, 2027. Star Wars: Starfighter will follow on May 28, 2027, with select IMAX 70mm film prints.
A new format for the film that began Star Wars
Lucasfilm's official September 8, 2026 announcement set out two major IMAX plans for the franchise's 50th anniversary year. The first concerns the original Star Wars, released in 1977 and subsequently subtitled A New Hope. Beginning February 19, 2027, a newly restored presentation will reach select cinemas, including the first IMAX screenings of the 1977 film. The company says some participating IMAX theaters will show the movie from 70mm film prints, while other venues will use digital presentations.
This is a special anniversary release, not a newly produced version of the story or a new installment in the fictional chronology. The original film's narrative still leads from the desert world of Tatooine through the destruction of Alderaan to the Battle of Yavin. For the archive, the IMAX event belongs on the real-world media-release calendar rather than the in-universe timeline of 0 BBY, and the two should be linked without being conflated.
Starfighter follows in May with IMAX-certified filming
The second part of the announcement concerns director Shawn Levy's standalone Star Wars: Starfighter, scheduled to arrive May 28, 2027, on the franchise's 50th-anniversary weekend. Lucasfilm says the film was shot using IMAX-certified cameras and that selected theaters will receive IMAX 70mm film prints. Those production details are more specific than a general statement that a blockbuster will be projected on large screens.
Starfighter stars Ryan Gosling as Kade Auberon, alongside Matt Smith, Mia Goth, Aaron Pierre, Jamael Westman, Daniel Ings, Flynn Gray, and Amy Adams. Lucasfilm describes the main character as a cynical rogue drawn into a journey that forces him to confront his mysterious past. The announcement does not itself verify every rumored plot detail or establish how those characters relate to stories currently appearing on television.
What fans can actually plan for
The confirmed dates are February 19, 2027 for the original film's anniversary run and May 28, 2027 for Starfighter. The announcement describes IMAX 70mm screenings at a select number of venues. It does not supply a comprehensive participating-theater list or guarantee that every cinema branded IMAX will have a 70mm print. Viewers should check venue and format listings when tickets are officially posted.
Likewise, a restored 1977 presentation is not the same as a promise that every historical cut of the film will be shown. Lucasfilm's wording addresses the restoration and format. Questions about the exact edit, sound mix, special-edition changes or individual theater hardware must be resolved through later official technical details rather than inferred from the phrase original Star Wars.
The unusual 50-year conversation between the two films
The pairing of Star Wars and Starfighter makes the anniversary a comparison between two moments in cinema technology. The 1977 release became a central reference point for effects-driven filmmaking. Fifty years later, a new Star Wars production is using contemporary large-format camera and distribution workflows while its predecessor receives a carefully framed theatrical restoration. Their shared IMAX program invites viewers to think about what persists across generations of visual storytelling.
Those different contexts should remain clear in IDS coverage. The upcoming movie is not a remake of A New Hope. Its production has its own cast and creative team. The restored original, meanwhile, is a renewed exhibition of a historic film rather than a newly dated episode in the Galactic Civil War. Both are part of the modern Star Wars media chronology, not interchangeable entries in galactic history.
Source trail
What this report is based on
- StarWars.com: Star Wars (1977) and Star Wars: Starfighter Debut in IMAX 70mm in 2027 ↗Original Lucasfilm announcement, September 8, 2026: dates, format, restoration and cast.
- StarWars.com: Star Wars Returns to Theaters for 50th Anniversary ↗Additional official background on the anniversary cinema program.
IDS labels unconfirmed information explicitly and updates stories when official information materially changes the status.