UK-based Star Wars fans are furious that the new DVD release of The Force Awakens fails to include much-publicised deleted scenes or a download link to watch the movie online.

JJ Abrams’s blockbuster space opera reboot debuted on home-video formats on Monday after zooming past $2bn (£1.39bn) at the global box office in February. A £9.99 DVD is available, but only the more expensive £15 Blu-ray release and a special edition £24.99 Blu-ray feature extra content such as the documentary Secrets of the Force Awakens: A Cinematic Journey and deleted scenes featuring Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren and Carrie Fisher’s Leia Organa. Purchasers of the DVD are unable to watch the film digitally because no download link has been included.

One fan told the Mirror: “I was really looking forward to this: I don’t have a Blu-ray player, so was intending to use the digital download key provided to get the movie online. But [there is] no digital download with the UK version: the US version has this. Completely unacceptable and I can’t think of a better way of driving people who WANT to buy a legitimate version to piracy sites. Idiots.”

Another posted on Amazon that the lack of a digital copy was a “complete disgrace in this day and age”, adding: “I cannot remember the last big movie that did not include a digital copy whether it be iTunes or the ultraviolet version.”

Amazon listings for the DVD appear to make no mention of extras, while listings for the two-disc Blu-ray editions clearly state that additional documentaries and deleted scenes are included. Some other retailers, such as Tesco, are less clear as to whether their products feature the additional content.



Disney UK said its DVD and Blu-ray releases have not featured digital download links on physical releases for more than five years and it was commonplace for extras to be included only on Blu-ray and digital-only editions.



“As a company we are committed to seeking out the best ways to provide audiences with access to Disney content,” said a spokesperson. “Each territory is different, and we evaluate and enact distribution strategies on a market-by-market basis. In the UK this means we do not include extras across our DVD products.

“Our Blu-ray and digital-download offerings for The Force Awakens are providing audiences with a wealth of extras including a special documentary, behind-the-scenes looks and much more that are now being enjoyed by thousands.”

Months of talk about Blu-Ray *and* DVD extras for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and the DVD is bare. Even Attack of the Clones fared better. — Joseph Sutton (@BadmanBegins) April 18, 2016

For those of us who bought the DVD coz we don't have a Blu-Ray player can we buy the @starwars #ForceAwakens extras disc separately? — davie hay (@jingo67) April 18, 2016

@craigward16 Hey, check out https://t.co/Q8Vgmp14re there are a lot of people putting up their Codes for free. — red6ft10 (@red6ft10) April 19, 2016