Lucas Makes Star Wars Changes

Perfectionist film-maker George Lucas has made a few major changes in the original Star Wars trilogy as he releases the films on DVD today (21SEP04).

The sci-fi mogul tampered with the original Star Wars film when the epic was re-released in 1997, and now he's made another handful of changes in a bid to stay true to his initial concept.

The most sweeping change is the result of Lucas inviting New Zealand star TEMURA MORRISON to replace four lines of dialogue originally spoken by actor MARK AUSTIN as BOBA FETT - because Fett is a clone of Morrison's EPISODE II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES villain JANGO FETT.

It isn't the first time Lucas has changed voices for the Star Wars project - he famously drafted in James Earl Jones to voice DARTH VADER because he didn't think Brit DAVE PROWSE's accent was menacing enough.

Lucas has also given gruesome JABBA THE HUTT a computer-generated makeover in the new films and actor Ian McDiarmid, who plays EMPEROR PALPATINE in EPISODE I, II and III, has been added to RETURN OF THE JEDI in a scene where DARTH VADER speaks to his hologram. Vader originally spoke to a masked woman.

Hayden Christensen (ANAKIN SKYWALKER/Darth Vader in Episode I, II and III) has also been morphed into the original trilogy in scenes where 'The Force' ghosts appear to be watching over Luke Skywalker.