Credit: Inside the MagicManny Jacinto made headlines this week for portraying Star Wars’ new Sith Lord in The Acolyte. While the series tries to push the sexier side of things with this performance, we can’t shake the images of gruesome and graphic deaths that happened in the previous episode.
“Teach/Corrupt” might have Qimir turning from a slacker smuggler to a shirtless and scarred sex symbol, but his acts of violence and murder seen at the end of “Night” are undoubtedly burned into the minds of many viewers. So why doesn’t Lucasfilm simply capitalize on it?
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If you’ve been keeping up with our recent coverage of The Acolyte, you’ll know that creator and showrunner Leslye Headland isn’t making many friends with some of her comments and creative choices. However, that doesn’t mean she’s entirely in the wrong.
The Horror of The Acolyte
Leslye Headland and Kathleen Kennedy are far from the good graces of the Star Wars fanbase, but they might actually be onto something with the horror-inspired elements seen in the series’ fifth episode. The franchise as a whole has been known for bending genres, and after seeing what the right influences can be capable of, a Star Wars slasher film might not be such a bad idea.
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The episode’s highlight features the Jedi Knights cornering their newfound foe before being absolutely butchered by a Force user they’ve never encountered before. With his shadowy presence and scary mask, he could easily pass for the galaxy’s equivalent to the Predator or Jason Voorhees.
In an official interview with Lucasfilm, Jacinto himself admitted that the horror elements were a distinct creative choice. The actor confirmed the idea with the following statement:
“She [Headland] had a very specific need to approach the Stranger in almost a horror-style type of way. We talked a lot about the concept of the uncanny; when you watch a horror movie and it’s not an explicit jump scare, but you see something and it’s a little off. Maybe somebody has a twitch in their eye or a misstep. We really honed in on that.”
While the show is far from perfect, it has several interesting ideas and concepts that should be explored. After all, Qimir isn’t the only Sith Lord in the bunch.
Revenge of the Sith
Many die-hard Star Wars fans would agree that the scene of Darth Vader slashing through rebel soldiers in the hallway in Rogue One (2016) was a terrifying hallmark of the film. Imagine what could happen if Lucasfilm made an entire movie about being hunted by him?
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Headland’s direction might be getting immense backlash, but her gift for horror hasn’t gone unnoticed. While it’s highly unlikely that fans will see the studio going all the way with this idea, viewers have still seen what kind of horrors the Star Wars universe can offer.
Would you watch a Sith Lord slasher movie? Tell Inside the Magic what you think in the comments below!