It’s not just the sequel trilogy that’s being erased — now another divisive Disney-era Star Wars entry is being wiped from canon!
Who could have ever imagined anything giving Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi (2017) a run for its money?
Granted, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker (2019) was a stinker in equal measure, doing nothing more than serving as a cheap form of damage-control over its franchise-destroying predecessor, and none of the live-action television shows beyond The Mandalorian Season 2 have exactly lived up to expectations, but no one could have predicted that Disney+ was just as capable of leaving the fanbase in tatters.
The Acolyte Is the Most Divisive Star Wars Entry Since The Last Jedi
Enter The Acolyte (2024), the latest live-action Star Wars television series from Disney+, which ended with thunderous applause from fans after eight episodes, with half the fanbase cheering on a second season, and the other half glad to see the back of the first one.
The Acolyte takes place 100 years before Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999) during the High Republic era, focusing on twin sisters Osha and Mae, both played by Amandla Stenberg, and their struggle between the light and the dark, the Jedi and the Sith.
It sounds mildly interesting on paper, but while it was packaged as a “murder mystery” set in the faraway galaxy, The Acolyte can hardly be categorized in that genre. If anything, the series gave rise to a new genre, one that’s far more interested in killing its very own fanbase.
The best way to sum up the overall response to the show is the look of utter disgust on Rey’s face as she watches Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) drink blue-ish green milk from the teat of an unhappy alien sea-cow on Ahch-To in the equally-divisive 2017 sequel The Last Jedi.
The Acolyte angered many fans with questionable storytelling decisions, uninteresting characters, a bloated budget of $180M that didn’t seem to translate into the show’s set designs and action pieces, and, ultimately, its blasphemous lore-breaking (apparently the Chosen One Anakin Skywalker was not the first person to have been created by the Force).
Many fans also accused The Acolyte of being “woke,” and defenders accused those critics of being “bigoted” due to the show’s diverse cast and LGBTQ+ characters. But while there are some genuine “trolls” out there, “toxic fans” operate on both sides of the fandom.
Even if you like The Acolyte, you can’t deny that it hasn’t garnered more controversy than the last two sequels combined. Sure, the pan of hot water that boiled furiously for several weeks while the show was airing had finally started to simmer, but now, those flames have been reignited by the news that Disney has canceled The Acolyte Season 2.
Related: George Lucas’ ‘Star Wars’ Restored Following ‘Acolyte’ Backlash
The Acolyte Season 2 Has Been Officially Canceled
“The power of one, the power of two, the power of manyyy.” Oh how that chant will live on for all the wrong reasons, because The Acolyte won’t be getting two seasons, let alone many.
As you’ve probably already heard, The Hollywood Reporter recently confirmed that The Acolyte will not be renewed for a second season. The official statement reads:
“The Acolyte will not return for season two. Lucasfilm has opted not to continue the Disney+ Star Wars series, which aired its season one finale last month.
The Leslye Headland-created show earned respectable reviews from critics but was panned by audiences, with only 18 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The show was review-bombed from some quarters who perceived it as ‘woke,’ with certain corners of the internet going after [Leslye] Headland, who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as the series’ diverse group of actors.”
Disney, along with the likes of showrunner Leslye Headland, lead actor Amandla Stenberg, and several media outlets, continue to claim that the huge discrepancy between the critics score and audience score on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes (currently 78% and 18%, respectively) — which, as you can see, is about as balanced as a see-saw with a Wampa on one seat and Grogu AKA Baby Yoda on the other — is due to “review-bombing.”
Either way, despite claims that the show’s success was sabotaged by toxic fans, The Acolyte Season 2 has been kicked into the Sarlacc, leaving nothing but the fading echoes of a high-pitched scream in its wake.
But The Acolyte didn’t go down without a fight — it has left the franchise in a worse state than it found it in. Now, haters are celebrating like it’s the end of the Galactic War in Return of the Jedi, while defenders are acting like Disney just executed Order 66 on all of them.
But the sad truth is that no one wins here.
If you admit that you like The Acolyte, you might be labeled a “Star Wars shill” — a nasty nickname for fans who give Disney Star Wars positive reviews so they can get free access to Lucasfilm events — and if you say you don’t like the show, you’ll probably be called “toxic.”
But to those who do like the show, it’s only going to get worse from here. Yes, The Acolyte is about to be erased from Star Wars canon.
Related: Lucasfilm Unveils New ‘Star Wars’ World With Five Themed Lands
Star Wars Is Hitting Reset
Fans who prayed for so long that the sequels will eventually be erased pinned all their hopes on the Disney+ series Ahsoka (2023), which brought the World Between Worlds into live action after it was introduced in the animated series Star Wars: Rebels (2014 — 2018).
A place where time does not exist, the mystical realm seemingly possesses the ability to rewrite history. However, its time in Ahsoka was fleeting and the concept underutilized. As such, fans remain stuck with the sequel trilogy and other disappointing Star Wars content.
But a new concept may end up doing for Star Wars what the World Between Worlds failed to do. The upcoming four-part miniseries LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy (2024) revolves around a an ancient powerful relic called the “Cornerstone”, a MacGuffin that ends up completely “rewriting” the entire Star Wars timeline as we know it.
Yes, we know that LEGO Star Wars is essentially a send-up of the franchise, but hear us out.
“When you removed the Cornerstone, you created a new galaxy,” Jedi Bob (Bobby Moynihan) tells Sig Greebling (Gaten Matarazzo) in the trailer. “Every person and every world will be different.” In the trailer, it’s revealed that the timeline has been completely reset by this artifact, which means that, within LEGO Star Wars canon, movies like the sequels and shows like The Acolyte do not exist — at least not in their original form.
Watch the new trailer from Star Wars YouTube below:
Related: Disney Officially Reboots ‘Star Wars’ After String of Disasters, Removes Sequels From Canon
The Future of The Acolyte
Of course, while LEGO Star Wars amounts to nothing more than a parody of the main franchise, the new MacGuffin known as the “Cornerstone” may eventually be brought into main canon. Talks of resetting the Star Wars franchise are nothing new — ever since The Last Jedi, it’s a wish that’s been at the top of letters to Santa Claus from many fans.
Whether or not The Acolyte will be removed from main Star Wars canon remains to be seen, but Disney and Lucasfilm are unlikely to indulge the show’s many haters. With that said, merchandise for the show has seemingly been removed from the online Disney Store.
In the meantime, you can always just pretend like it never happened, which will be easier now that Season 2 has been canned and its characters are unlikely to show up elsewhere.
We’re certain that Sig Greebling will be able to put the pieces of the galaxy back together in the LEGO Star Wars series, but what will Disney and Lucasfilm do to repair the franchise?
LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy sees the return of Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian, Naomi Ackie as Jannah, Anthony Daniels as C-3PO, Kelly Marie Tran as Rose Tico, and Ahmed Best, this time as “Darth Jar Jar.”
All eight episodes of The Acolyte are now streaming on Disney+.
LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy premieres on September 13.
The voice cast features Gaten Matarazzo (Sig Greebling), Tony Revolori (Dev Greebling), Bobby Moynihan (Jedi Bob), Marsai Martin (Yesi Scala), Michael Cusack (Servo), Ahmed Best (Darth Jar Jar), Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian), Naomi Ackie (Jannah), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Kelly Marie Tran (Rose Tico), and Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker).
Are you excited about LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy? Would you like to see The Acolyte removed from main Star Wars canon? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!