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Credit: LucasfilmThe cancellation of Star Wars: The Acolyte sent a ripple throughout the galaxy as the controversial spinoff series drove a wedge that divided the fandom. While the show’s producers were quick to blame racist and misogynistic fans, viewers and consumers are finally having their say.
Many audiences disliked The Acolyte due to unmet expectations, pacing or storytelling issues, and production choices that didn’t align with the established Star Wars mythos. However, its most grievous sin was that it denied experienced Star Wars writers a voice and that the creator and showrunner blamed viewers for its shortcomings.
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After Disney finally pulled the plug, fans made their voices heard on social media, and a recent post on the Star Wars subreddit shared the truth behind the image painted by showrunner Leslye Headland and Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy.
A Rebel Yell From Star Wars Fans
For those of you who heeded the warnings of other viewers and skipped watching the series, the plot concerns a former Padawan (Amandla Stenberg) who reunites with her Jedi Master (Lee Jung-jae) to investigate the murders of multiple Jedi Knights. As they delve deeper into the case, they uncover a dark conspiracy involving ancient evils and the rise of a mysterious Sith Lord (Manny Jacinto).
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Set 100 years before The Phantom Menace (1999), the show utilizes its High Republic Era setting to paint a new picture of the galaxy far, far away. Unfortunately, the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.
With a dismal 18% audience score on RottenTomatoes, it’s clear that the series failed to live up to fans’ expectations in more ways than one. A recent post on r/StarWars asked them,
“Do you think the cancelation of Acolyte is justifiable, or do we need better Star Wars media with things and stories that deepen the lore and explore new stuff and intriguing aspects of the universe?”
Like any controversial topic on a public forum, it was only a matter of time before it received a massive response from hundreds of viewers. Unsurprisingly, many took this opportunity to voice their grievances with the series.
Down in the comments, u/Dmmack14 takes a practical approach to the production dramas when they write,
“I just don’t understand how they spent so much money. Where did it all go? It’s not like they had massive named actresses other than the one lady from ‘The Matrix’ whose name escapes me. At the moment. I feel really bad for the squid games actor who learned English just for that role because he was actually fantastic. There was some real breakout performances in that show. It’s just a damn shame that they’ll never get a shot at season 2.”
Underneath, u/gildedbluetrout takes a more creative lens to The Acolyte by addressing the storytelling portion of its problems when they write,
“The writing was terrible too. For a show with some truly violent, dark, lightsaber battles, it managed to be weirdly beige? Were the Jedi really the bad guys? Did the witches have a point? Are musical interpretive dance routines in Star Wars a good idea? Probably not.”
Of course, u/TheZag90 shares perhaps the most obvious flaw with the top-rated post.
“It was the lowest-watched Disney Star Wars show and cost the most (by a long way). Cancellation was a mathematical inevitability.”
Axing The Acolyte
You could fill page after page with problems the series had from both a production and a reception perspective, but it all boils down to not respecting the source material or the series’ core demographic (at least in this writer’s opinion). If the production drama is to be believed, the creators missed that point from day one.
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The producers, and even some of the cast, have blamed “review-bombing” for the show’s failure, and that’s not to say that the fanbase doesn’t have a toxic history.
However, launching an entire franchise with an unprepared creative team, the bare minimum understanding of the lore, and a narrative more focused on social commentary than Star Wars isn’t something Disney would invest time, money, and effort in for a second season.
Because of that, The Acolyte will remain a black mark on the extended universe. All we can do now is hope that Skeleton Crew learns from the sins of the past.