Highlander is heading back to theaters in 4K for a limited run as part of its 40th anniversary, with an all-new poster leading the campaign. The 1986 cult classic will also arrive as a collector's edition UHD and Blu-Ray release on June 16.
For viewers who remember the film, the return is anchored by sean connery as the Egyptian immortal Ramirez, the mentor to Christopher Lambert's Connor MacLeod. Lambert's swordsman moves from 16th-century Scotland to 1980s New York City, where Clancy Brown's villainous Kurgan gives the story its bloodline of duels and revenge.
The restoration lands with a reminder of why Highlander lasted. Lambert trained with Olympic fencer and Darth Vader stunt double Bob Anderson for several months before filming, while Michael Kamen's orchestral score and contributions from Queen gave the film a sound that outlived its release. The franchise did not stop there: it spawned a novel, two sequels and a TV series that ran for six seasons in the 1990s, centered on Duncan MacLeod, the younger cousin of Connor.
That long afterlife is also why the timing matters now. A remake directed by Chad Stahelski and led by Henry Cavill was recently previewed at CinemaCon, with Cavill set to play Connor MacLeod and Dave Bautista cast as the Kurgan. The new film is currently slated for May 15, 2027, but the original's return underlines the one thing the remake cannot replace: there is no Sean Connery to save it.
What the restoration really offers is not just a nostalgia pass but a test of whether the original still hits as hard as the legend says. Based on this anniversary rollout, the answer is yes.