If you’re a Star Wars fan, then chances are high that you know the great fandom debate surrounding an alien character named Greedo. When the very first Star Wars movie, later subtitled A New Hope, was released back in 1977, it featured a scene where Harrison Ford’s rogue smuggler Han Solo encounters Greedo, a bounty hunter, in a cantina on Tatooine. The two get into a dispute over money Han owes the sluggish Jabba the Hutt, which results in Han shooting and killing Greedo without much of a passing thought. However, when the film was re-released in its special edition format in 1997, George Lucas made a crucial edit. In this new version, Greedo shoots at Han first and misses, so that Han’s blaster shot looks like a move of defense.
This change has angered fans in the 20+ years since, prompting the famous internet declaration: “Han shot first.” To many, this change altered Han’s characterization, softening him from a swindler who’s only out for himself to a man who only resorts to violence to protect himself. Some felt personally betrayed by Lucas, and used the Greedo scene as proof that Lucas was losing his touch—which was strengthened with the controversial prequels just a few years later.
It’s a mostly pointless debate, but one that still riles people up. And now, with the arrival of Disney+, another curious chapter has been added to the great Greedo debate. All of the original trilogy Star Wars movies are finally able to stream on the app, but A New Hope comes with a little bonus. It appears someone at Lucasfilm has tinkered with the Han and Greedo moment yet again. This time, the additional is even more ridiculous. As with the special edition, Greedo shoots first in the Disney+ version, but now—before Han shoots back—he yells the word, “Maclunkey.”
In the Disney+ version of Star Wars Greedo now shouts “MACLUNKEY” before getting shot. This is now my favorite version because why the hell not? MACLUNKEY! #starwars #maclunkey pic.twitter.com/k1XmP8wAZT
— Eric Fell (@ericfell) November 12, 2019
What the hell does “maclunkey” mean? Your guess is as good as ours. And yes, this actually happens in the Disney+ edition and is not some funny fan edit. (We double-checked to be sure.) As far as we know, “maclunkey” isn’t a word that has any significance in Star Wars. It’s not the name of any character, and we’ve never heard it used as a curse word before, which is seemingly its purpose here. It looks like another silly thing added to stir the pot. Is someone at Lucasfilm trolling us?
According to the Twitter account Eleven-ThirtyEight—which is a Star Wars fan account—the whole “maclunkey” thing actually comes from George Lucas.
Not making a habit of this but I should correct my assumption: according to Pablo “Maclunkey” is a Lucas thing from the aborted 3D project a while back. https://t.co/1qgnrm0fJS
— Eleven-ThirtyEight (@eleventhirtyate) November 12, 2019
The “Pablo” referenced is Pablo Hidalgo, head of the Lucasfilm Story Group, who’s been employed by the company since Lucas still had the reins. Apparently, when the films were being converted to 3D for a theatrical release—a project that was later abandoned—Lucas intended to put the “maclunkey” moment in there himself. Why, you might ask? Again, we have no idea. For now, we happily accept “maclunkey” as the mystery that it is.
Featured Image: Disney/Lucasfilm
