‘Star Wars’ Returns for Christmas With Luke, Han, and Leia in New Special
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away — and eventually in Wales — Star Wars arrived on television during the holiday season.
Star Wars is heading into the Christmas season once again, but this time with something that is considerably more ambitious — and considerably more official.
A New Hope Comes to Wales
Disney, Lucasfilm, S4C, and Creative Wales are bringing Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) to Welsh-speaking audiences in a brand-new version titled Star Wars: Gobaith Newydd.
Rather than creating a new story, the project gives the original movie an entirely new Welsh voice cast. It will premiere on S4C and its streaming platforms on Christmas Day, December 25, 2026, ahead of the franchise’s 50th anniversary in 2027.
Among the performers taking part is Aimee-Ffion Edwards as Princess Leia. Edwards is joined by Osian Morgan as Luke Skywalker, Matthew Rhys as Han Solo, and Rhys Ifans as Obi-Wan Kenobi. The cast also includes Mark Lewis Jones as Darth Vader, Llŷr Ifans as C-3PO, Nia Roberts as Aunt Beru, Richard Harrington as Grand Moff Tarkin, Owain Arthur as Red Leader, and Rhodri Meilir as Gold Leader.
The first Christmas-adjacent television event came just over a year after Star Wars: A New Hope (1977).
The Star Wars Holiday Special (1978) introduced audiences to the Wookiee celebration of “Life Day,” with Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) attempting to return home to his family while Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), and Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) reprised their roles. It became infamous rather than beloved.
Originally broadcast by CBS on November 17, 1978, the special was met with widespread criticism and was eventually excluded from current Star Wars canon. Life Day, however, survived and has since been incorporated into official continuity. The special itself was later given a LEGO parody in The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special (2020).
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Star Wars Returns at Christmas
The original Star Wars movie follows Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), a young farm boy living on Tatooine who becomes caught up in the battle against the Galactic Empire.
After meeting Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness), Luke joins Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), C-3PO (Anthony Daniels), and R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) on a mission that ultimately brings them into conflict with Darth Vader (James Earl Jones).
Now, that iconic story will be performed in Welsh for the first time officially.
S4C has already offered a first glimpse of the project through an official teaser, which features the opening text crawl translated into Welsh:
Lucasfilm Co-President Lynwen Brennan praised Wales’ storytelling traditions and its “beautiful lyrical language,” adding that Welsh speakers will finally be able to experience the movie in their native language.
The project arrives at a particularly significant time for Star Wars. With the franchise approaching its 50th anniversary, Gobaith Newydd offers a new way for audiences to experience the movie that started everything — this time in a language that has never officially hosted the galaxy far, far away.
And unlike the infamous 1978 Holiday Special, this Christmas Star Wars release is one that Lucasfilm is likely to be rather proud of.
What do you think of Star Wars receiving a special Christmas Day release? Would you watch the movie in Welsh? Let us know in the comments below!
