There will be no second season for ‘Star Wars: The Acolyte‘, as it’s revealed Lucasfilm and Disney+ have opted to cancel the drama just a couple of months after it launched season one on the streaming service.
The series starred Amandla Stenberg (Dear Evan Hansen, Bodies Bodies Bodies) as “Osha” and “Mae”, twins who had been separated by a tragedy when they were young. As Sol (Lee Jung-jae – ‘Squid Game’), a respected Jedi Master, investigated a shocking crime spree, it led him to Osha, who he had previously rescued as a child. However, as more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all was not as it seemed.
The series, which was created by Leslye Headland (‘Russian Doll’), initially did okay with critics and audiences and was the biggest series premiere on Disney+ this year so far. However, that attention didn’t really hold, and whilst we don’t exactly get accurate ratings for streaming services, the numbers we do have seem to imply it was the lowest-rated finale for a Star Wars series to date.
The drama was the first live-action series to be set in the Star Wars “High Republic Era” (around 500 BBY to 100 BBY – Before the Battle of Yavin), although this time has been covered extensively in the “canon” novels and comicbooks. It is an interesting period in Star Wars history, and one I do hope they explore more. The issue I personally had with ‘The Acolyte’ was not the period, but the… interesting… choices Headland made regarding the characters.
(SPOILERS INCOMING) The “High Republic” is a period when the Jedi Order is at its height, so consequently, there are quite a few Jedi in the series. Alongside Jung-jae’s Sol, Charlie Barnett ( Russian Doll, YOU), Joonas Suotamo (Star Wars sequels Chewbacca), Dafne Keen (Logan, His Dark Materials), and Carrie-Anne Moss (Jessica Jones, The Matrix films) all play Jedi characters. Headland does a good job of introducing them and making them people you want to know more about, only to end up killing all of them. It’s an odd choice…
Despite most of the season one cast being dead, there is a story to tell for a second season, as both Osha and Mae survive, along with Manny Jacinto’s (The Good Place) yet-to-be-revealed Sith “Stranger” character. Headland had pitched ideas for a second season to Disney, which would involve revealing who “The Stranger” was, and his connection to Darth Plagueis. They could consider continuing the story in comicbook form in future, but we’ll have to wait and see.
The Acolyte came from creator and showrunner Leslye Headland (Russian Doll), who also served as executive producer alongside Kathleen Kennedy, Simon Emanuel, Jeff F. King, and Jason Micallef. Charmaine DeGraté and Kor Adana were the co-executive producers, and Rayne Roberts and Damian Anderson produced.
‘Star Wars: The Acolyte‘ can be streamed on Disney+ now.
