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Credit: LucasfilmA Darth Plagueis prequel series was just confirmed.
Is The Acolyte Season 2 happening?
The Acolyte, a Disney+ series set during the High Republic era of the Star Wars universe, was canceled after its first season, despite initial plans for continuation.
The show, created by Leslye Headland, aimed to explore the emergence of dark side powers within the Jedi’s Golden Age, offering a fresh perspective on the Force. However, its ambitious storytelling and diverse casting led to polarized reactions among fans.
From its announcement, The Acolyte faced controversy, with some praising its inclusivity and others criticizing it as overly progressive.
The series featured a diverse ensemble cast, including Amandla Stenberg (Osha/Mae Aniseya), Lee Jung-jae (Jedi Master Sol), Manny Jacinto (Qimir/The Stranger), and Jodie Turner-Smith (Mother Aniseya). Despite a strong premiere, viewership declined over time, and the show ultimately fell out of Nielsen’s Top 10 streaming rankings.
That said, new data suggests that The Acolyte‘s cancellation may have been premature. According to data compiled by Parrot Analytics, the demand for Leslye Headland’s High Republic-era series actually surpasses several other recent Star Wars titles—including Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, and even Dave Filoni’s 2023 series Ahsoka.
Parrot Analytics, which measures audience demand based on factors such as viewership, social media engagement, and online activity, calculates a show’s popularity relative to the average series in the U.S. The metric is expressed as a multiple of average demand, offering a unified benchmark across titles.
Despite its cancellation seven months prior, The Acolyte still shows strong traction, registering a demand level 20.4 times greater than the market average—a threshold that places it in the top 2.7% of all shows, which Parrot classifies as “outstanding.”
In comparison, Obi-Wan Kenobi logged 11.4 times the average demand, The Book of Boba Fett reached 11.7, and Ahsoka peaked at 13.9. Only Skeleton Crew (21.7) and The Mandalorian (26.9) outperformed The Acolyte in this metric.
These figures suggest that audience interest in The Acolyte remains robust, raising questions about the strategic reasoning behind pulling the plug on a series that may have had untapped staying power in the streaming market.
However, Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman previously cited the show’s high production costs, reportedly over $230 million, as a primary reason for its cancellation. While the series received a 78% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, audience reception was less favorable, with an 18% rating.
The cancellation left several narrative threads unresolved, including the potential introduction of Darth Plagueis, who was revealed for the first time in live-action in the season finale–Episode 8, “The Acolyte.”
Who is Darth Plagueis, and why is he important?
Though mentioned only briefly, Darth Plagueis remains one of the most enigmatic and influential figures in Star Wars mythology.
First introduced to audiences in Star Wars: Episode III–Revenge of the Sith (2005), the character is recalled by Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) in a pivotal scene that not only teases the dark allure of the Sith but subtly foreshadows Anakin Skywalker’s (Hayden Christensen) transformation into Darth Vader.
Palpatine’s recounting of “The Tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise” describes a Sith so powerful he could manipulate the Force to prevent death and create life, suggesting a mastery over mortality itself. Though left unnamed in the moment, it is heavily implied that Plagueis was Palpatine’s own Sith Master, eventually betrayed and killed in accordance with the Sith Rule of Two.
The return of Revenge of the Sith in theaters–a return that proved incredibly lucrative for Lucasfilm, with the movie taking a global weekend haul of $42+ million–for its 20th anniversary, has reignited discussions over Palpatine’s former master. In a recent interview with Variety, Ian McDiarmid confirmed that a Darth Plagueis prequel series was once in the works.
After being asked about the once-planned Palpatine TV series, McDiarmid explained that it was set to be the story of Plagueis. “Just the story of Darth Plagueis the Wise,” the actor said. “It’s fairly obvious that my character murdered Plagueis on his road to becoming Palpatine. But beyond that, no.”
Before The Acolyte‘s cancellation, it looked positive that fans would be getting more Darth Plagueis in the live-action Star Wars canon; however, with the show now scrapped, will Lucasfilm respond to this continuing fan interest and establish a story for the character?
Outside of this cinematic reference, the most substantial account of the character comes from James Luceno’s “Darth Plagueis” (2012), a Legends-era novel that delves deep into Plagueis’s life, philosophy, and ultimate downfall.
In the novel, Plagueis is portrayed as a Muun named Hego Damask, a banking magnate and secret Sith Lord whose influence reaches into galactic finance, politics, and dark-side experimentation.
Obsessively driven by the pursuit of immortality, Plagueis attempts to manipulate midi-chlorians to defy death—a concept echoed later by Palpatine’s own resurrection efforts in Star Wars: Episode XI–The Rise of Skywalker (2019).
The novel also details the early life of Sheev Palpatine, who becomes Plagueis’s apprentice and eventual killer, marking a chilling turning point in Sith history. Though decanonized following Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm, the novel remains a cornerstone of fan understanding surrounding the character.
Ultimately, Darth Plagueis stands as a symbol of the Sith’s ultimate ambition: to transcend nature itself. His brief mention in Revenge of the Sith continues to spark fan theories, narrative speculation, and philosophical debate, with the legacy of Darth Plagueis looming large over the Star Wars saga.
As for Emperor Palpatine, the character famously–and divisively–returned in J.J. Abrams’ sequel trilogy finisher, The Rise of Skywalker, where he was revealed to be the grandfather of Daisy Ridley’s Rey. Over time, through additional media like novels, comic books, guides, and Dave Filoni’s The Bad Batch series, more context has been given as to how the Sith Lord survived.
How do you feel about a Darth Plagueis Star Wars series? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!