Star Wars

Star Wars (later subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope) was released in the United States on May 25, 1977. Under the Copyright Act of 1976, works created or published during this era were granted protection for 75 years (later extended to 95 years by the 1998 Copyright Term Extension Act) from the date of publication, provided they complied with notice and registration requirements. The film was registered with the U.S. Copyright Office by Lucasfilm Ltd. and 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. shortly after its release. According to the U.S. Copyright Office's online records (CoCatalog), the film is registered under PA0000000001 (and several subsequent related registrations). Because it was published in 1977, it falls under the 1992 Copyright Renewal Act, which made renewal automatic for works published between 1964 and 1977. Therefore, the copyright is currently valid and is not scheduled to expire until 2072 (95 years after its 1977 publication). The rights are currently held by Lucasfilm Ltd., a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, following their 2012 acquisition. Note: generated without live web grounding (the grounded research engine was unavailable). Verify the cited sources independently before relying on this determination.