10 Most Pointless Changes To The Star Wars Movies You Never Even Noticed
2. Oola In The Pit - Return Of The Jedi
Like the wampa, the Special Editions also reduce the impact of another iconic Star Wars monster - the rancor.
The original version is a masterclass of building expectation and suspense; the crab-beast-thing first alluded to when Oola, Jabba's unlucky slave, is thrown into a dark pit and goaded by the denizens above as she screams in reaction to an unseen threat. But it's not until Luke turns up a good ten minutes later that we actually see what horror lurks down below.
For the re-release, some clips of the twi'lek slave girl in the pit (with Femi Taylor reprising her role fourteen years later) looking apprehensive as the rancor comes out were added. They don't go as far as revealing the creature, but it does alleviate much of the mystery surrounding what exactly is below the throne room.
You could argue that as audiences know what's in there from lifelong rewatching it doesn't matter too much, but that flies in the face of these versions allegedly being all about updating the films for a new generation to discover.
This is needless elaboration, pure and simple. But, slotted in just after the abhorrent Jedi Rocks sequence it's so incredibly minor that it's easy to ignore.