Star Wars fans were lucky that they didn't have to wait long for The Force Awakens to be released on home media. After being released in theaters on December 14, 2015, the franchise's seventh live action theatrical installment was made available digitally on April 1, and the Blu-ray/DVD release followed on April 5. Now only four months later, we've learned that The Force Awakens isn't done providing its fans new content, as a new home media release is coming shortly before the holidays, and it will be packed with a lot of never-before-seen deleted scenes.
Lucasfilm announced today that the Star Wars: The Force Awakens 3D Collector's Edition will be released in the United States and Canada on November 15, with certain other countries getting it as early as October 31 and as late as November 24. This four-disc edition will contain "original theatrical release on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, Digital HD and DVD." Along with these various ways to watch the movie, the collection will not only contain bonus features included in the April releases, but also plenty of fresh material, including new deleted scenes, a new audio commentary from director J.J. Abrams and behind-the-scenes conversations with the cast and crew.
To commemorate the announcement, Lucasfilm also released a Star Wars: The Force Awakens clip showing Poe Dameron and his X-Wing squadron swooping in to save Han Solo, Chewbacca and Finn from The First Order on Takodana. It's not a deleted scene, but it's still a fun watch.
While it's common for blockbuster movies to put out new Blu-ray and DVD copies every couple of years, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is definitely trying to stretch out its popularity as long as possible with this 3D Collector's Edition. While the original home releases included deleted moments and a lot of other bonus material for viewers to pour over, this appears to be the ultimate edition for hardcore fans. One wonders if they'll follow this same approach for future releases. Unfortunately for the folks who already bought their copy of the movie earlier this year, it's doubtful Lucasfilm will release any of these deleted scenes online, but there's always a chance they could feel generous and officially release one or two after the 3D Collector's Edition has spent a decent amount of time on shelves.
The Star Wars sequel trilogy will continue on December 15, 2017 when Star Wars: Episode VIII is released, but fans will be able to jump back to a galaxy far, far away on December 16 this year when Rogue One: A Star Wars Story hits theaters.
