Han shot first

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Greedo's big miss in the 2004 DVD version of A New Hope

In Star Wars fandom, the phrase "Han shot first" refers to the changes made to a scene in Star Wars, involving the characters Han Solo and Greedo in the Mos Eisley Cantina. The bounty hunter Greedo has come at the behest of Jabba the Hutt, to whom Solo owes a large debt for a failed smuggling run. Apparently, the bounty on Solo's head is of the "dead-or-alive" variety, as Greedo tells him he will enjoy killing him:

GREEDO: You can tell that to Jabba. He may only take your ship.

HAN SOLO: Over my dead body.

GREEDO: That's the idea... I've been looking forward to this for a long time.

HAN SOLO: Yes, I'll bet you have.

During this entire exchange, Greedo has kept his "blaster" aimed at Solo, as Solo craftily works his hand down to his own weapon.

In the original version, Solo shoots Greedo under the table after uttering the line "Yes, I'll bet you have." In the 1997 Special Edition version, Greedo shoots at Solo from point blank range and misses. Han shoots him in retaliation afterwards. Thus, the phrase "Han shot first" is a retort to director George Lucas's implicit assertion that "Greedo shot first." In the original release of Star Wars, only one shot was fired, and it was fired by Han Solo. The ire of some fans led to an online petition demanding that the changes be retracted. ^[1]

Since the Special Editions, there have been two DVD releases. In the 2004 DVD release, the disputed scene was altered again to have Solo and Greedo shooting at almost the same time (though Greedo still shoots first); Greedo still misses from point blank range. The 2004 DVD release also altered the scene to where Han "dodges" the shot by digitally leaning him to the side. Neither of these changes did much to appease those who were unhappy with the changes.

The 2006 DVD had two versions — the 2004 changes and the original theatrical version. The theatrical version features no changes, including Han Solo shooting first without Greedo firing a shot. When announcing the dual version DVDs, Lucasfilm made note of the fact that the controversial scene was included by saying: "...and yes, see Han Solo shoot first." ^[2]