Everything We Want To See In ‘Star Wars: The Acolyte’
Image Source: GameRant.com
It seems like Disney is announcing a new Star Wars project every day. Of course, Star Wars fans aren’t exactly starved for content from upcoming seasons of Star Wars Visions and The Mandalorian, canon universe novels to new lightsaber designs at Galaxy’s Edge. But of all the upcoming Star Wars projects, few have the fandom as intrigued as The Acolyte, an upcoming Disney+ series.
Little is known about the project besides its main cast, showrunner Leslye Headland (Russian Doll), and its setting in the waning days of the High Republic, but that hasn’t stopped fans from theorising the plot, its characters, and building up hype.
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Here’s a list of everything we’d like to see in Star Wars: The Acolyte (but if we don’t, who cares? It’s still new Star Wars content):
Dark Side-Centric Story / Characters
This is a given. For those who don’t know, the term ‘acolyte’ refers to someone who performs minor tasks for a religious order. But within the Star Wars universe (or at least in Legends), an acolyte was a term for someone who had just started their journey down the dark side or their Sith training.
The initial press release for The Acolyte mentioned that the show will be “a mystery thriller that will take us into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark side powers in the final days of the High Republic era,” which means that the inclusion of dark side users is all but inevitable.
Some Star Wars fans have been calling out for a film anthology or even a series that focuses more on the dark side of the Sith, as opposed to the Skywalker Saga, which focuses more on the Jedi. Of course, The Acolyte doesn’t explicitly say that it will focus on dark side characters, only that the story will involve “emerging dark side powers” and will take place in a darker pocket of the galaxy. But with these confirmed elements, and the title is synonymous with dark side trainees, a focus on the darker side of the Force in this series is inevitable. And if not inevitable, then certainly a step in the right direction towards a truly dark side series.
Fully Fleshed Out, Enjoyable Characters / Story
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This is a fundamental given for any fictional media, but an important one nonetheless. It has been three years since the sequel trilogy ended, but the mishandling of its characters and stories has left a bad taste in certain fans. This bad taste persists, even while Disney/Lucasfilm has redeemed itself with shows like The Mandalorian, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and (somewhat) The Book of Boba Fett.
The fear of fumbled characterisation and story is constant in the Star Wars fandom now, especially with new talent being brought into the show, which is why The Acolyte should ensure that its unique characters and story resonate with the audience. And that while the show explores a genre unseen in Star Wars, it should take care not to deviate too far from the Star Wars mold.
And if the story isn’t as well-received as the showrunners hope, then hopefully, the cast and characters will be. A common factor among fan-favourite characters is their moral greyness and rebel tendencies, so a dark-side mystery-thriller is an excellent opportunity to capitalise on that. Remember the old writing adage, an audience will follow a flat plot for great characters, but not vice versa.
Legends / Expanded Universe References
If The Acolyte truly is focusing on dark side characters, then this is an excellent opportunity for the restoration of some fan-favourite Sith characters into the Star Wars canon. This isn’t a matter of fan service but homage and enrichment. Yes, the Skywalker Saga included Darth Vader and Palpatine (arguably two of cinema’s greatest villains), but it didn’t contain much else about the dark side and the Sith. It wasn’t until the introduction of Legends continuity that the Sith went from a group of terrible twosomes to a group as large as the Jedi Order - arguably with more depth and complexity.
Can you imagine the frenzy that the fandom would spiral into with namedrops of characters like Revan, Vitiate, or Nihilus? Or if the show were to visit Sith worlds like Korriban or Dromund Kaas?
The simple truth is that the best Sith-related content came from Legends and if Disney wants to win fans over, restoring some of these characters and lore would be the way to go. Plus, from a timing perspective, revisiting some Legends content would help ‘fill in the cracks and save the writers and the show from having to do too much world-building - instead of spending time on characterisation and story.
This might seem like a big ask of The Acolyte showrunners - not to mention the Legends-averse Disney/Lucasfilm - but fans are optimistic after Leslye Headland admitted to being a massive fan of the Legends/Expanded Universe in an article for Vanity Fair. Will Headland take this opportunity to make not only her dreams come true, but those of countless other Legends fans? Will the fandom finally see some of its favourite Sith/dark side lore restored to Star Wars canon? And speaking of “fan-favourite” Sith Lords…
Rule Of Two / Sith Cameos
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One of the little details we know about The Acolyte is that the show will be set in 132BBY (100 years before The Phantom Menace, putting it in the Rule of Two Sith era). The Rule of Two was a doctrine created by Darth Bane, 1000 years before the Skywalker Saga, to stop the in-fighting and betrayal plaguing the Sith Order. The Rule stated that there should only be two Sith at any given time, “a Master to embody power and an Apprentice to crave it,” and that the two would work to infiltrate and undermine the Republic from within.
If the period is correct, then that would mean that by the events of The Acolyte, the Rule of Two has been going on for almost 900 years, which begs the question - will we see any of Darth Bane’s successors during the show?
Many fans are hoping for a cameo from a young Palpatine or even his master, Darth Plagueis, but this will be unlikely, considering the series is set 50 years before Palpatine was born (82BBY) and Plagueis himself was born somewhere between 147-120BBY, meaning that he would be twelve at the oldest. That does not, however, rule out Plagueis’ master, Tenebrous, who murdered his master (an as-of-yet unnamed Sith Lord) between 167-124BBY, meaning that Tenebrous is ‘active’ during the events of The Acolyte.
Will the cast of The Acolyte work alongside one of Bane’s successors? Will they cross paths or cross lightsabers? One thing for sure, a cameo from Tenebrous or even a mention of the post-Bane Sith would send the fandom into hysterics - particularly if this series is laying the groundwork for a Darth Bane or Palpatine series…
Expansion Of Canon Sith Lore
Point 3 covered the hopes of Legends and Expanded Universe material making a comeback. The previous two points seem unlikely. But if this is the case and the Legends Sith lore won’t be expanded upon, then Disney/Lucasfilm should take the opportunity to expand on canon Sith lore instead.
As mentioned earlier, the sequel trilogy and Star Wars canon have left much to be desired in world-building and lore, nowhere near as meaty as its Legends counterparts. Audiences were introduced to new dark side concepts like the planet Exegol, the Force Dyad, the Sith Eternal cult, and the daggers used in Sith rituals’, but not much time was spent exploring these concepts. If The Acolyte is going to explore more dark-side-related content, then it would behoove the show to try and flesh out the lore of the Sith. What were the origins of the Sith Eternal cult? What kind of rituals did they conduct within? Did they have a connection to the Rule of Two, or were they separate entities? If all the major Sith and Jedi conflicts are Legends, then what happened in canon?
These questions must be answered more if canon wants to stand on its own two feet.
Quality, Blood-Pumping, Heart-Racing Battles
C’mon, does this really need any elaboration? Epic duels and lightsaber battles are as much a part of Star Wars as the spaceships, droids, and rebellions, so here’s hoping that The Acolyte can deliver some quality fight scenes. Star Wars fans have been spoiled with fights in The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan Kenobi, but the fandom’s appetite is relentless, so here’s hoping that Disney/Lucasfilm can keep delivering. Leslye Headland stated in her Vanity Fair article that she is committed to honouring Star Wars’ martial arts roots, so fans can expect some Asian cinema-inspired fights to tide them over.
However, it’s important to remember that before The Phantom Menace, a Sith Lord had not been seen for over 1000 years - since Darth Bane’s time. And because The Acolyte takes place 100 years before The Phantom Menace, any kind of Sith vs. Jedi interaction is off the table unless handled in a way that remains faithful to Star Wars canon.
The Acolyte is currently in production, with Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-Jae, and Manny Jacinto set to star. However, no release date has been given.
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Source(s): vanityfair, gamerant