Summary
Star Wars: The Acolytemight have ended prematurely after it failed to secure a second season order, but one of its main stars reveals that there was even more in the works from the showrunner than fans might have thought.
The first thing audiences noted aboutStar Wars: The Acolytewas that there hadn’t been anything quite like it in the franchise’s live-action history, and certainly nothing like it in Disney’s post-Legends canon. Telling a story in part from the perspective of the titular Sith Acolyte, the show was set to bring a whole new vibe to modernStar Warsand the High Republic era. However, the first season wouldn’t stick the landing for many, and the show was subsequently not renewed. Additionally, the approach taken in the show was divisive, leading tofear that Disney would pullThe Acolytefrom streamingentirely.
While executives have maintained that The Acolyte was canceled due to budgeting issues (despite not even rivaling the renewedStar Wars: Andor’sfranchise-high season 1 production costs), there was always an understanding that the show’s story would be told over more than one season. Fans got the memo from Leslye Headland early on in the promotional cycle, but now star Manny Jacinto has revealed just how much more the showrunner had planned for audiences.
I remember Leslye’s dream was for us to do three seasons, not just this one … But there’s something about having a finite ending to things that makes it so much more special,
Jacinto revealed during a fan expo facilitated and reported on byCollider, going on to share a sentiment about the missed opportunity to tell more stories in that world. “So, yeah, I don’t know if I’d do it or not, but you know, three seasons and a movie would have been incredible, and I know we had so much more to explore with that second season.”
While Leslye Headland was open about wanting a second season for the show, with a specific focus on actually building onthe reveal of Sith Lord Darth Plagueis from the first installment’s last act, Jacinto is the first to reveal the full scope of her plans. While it’s unclear whether or not a feature film was ever on the table for Headland, the last statement is probably more of a nod toThe Mandalorian & Grogu,the theatrical project being prepared as the final chapter of The Mandalorian’s three-season run on Disney+. Either way, fans of the project will be even more loathe to see it go when there was so much more planned.
While at leastone of Jacinto’s costars was unbothered byThe Acolyte’sfate, the man behind Qimir’s mask certainly does seem to be put out by the abrupt end of the show. Granted, his character had way more to gain from more seasons than much of the cast (due to the show’s pretty generous kill count for named characters), but some less invested actors could have been put off by the show’s divisive nature. While there was certainly a contingent of fans who were all for the new direction that Headland brought to the table, many others were varying shades of disapproving.
If referencingStar Wars:The Mandalorian‘srun of three seasons and an upcoming movie, Jacinto could be alluding to that show’s evolving approach and how initial detractors were able to find a place in the audience over time. Three seasons is indeed more than enough time to address any criticism that the show might be able to learn from, but it’s likely that, likeThe Mandalorian,the change would just cause a demographic shift instead of actually growing the overall audience. For better or (more likely) worse, theStar Warsfandom seems firmly divided into subgroups with vastly different preferences.
WhileThe Acolytewas a bad patch for the franchise in terms of its return on investment and fandom cohesion, things seem to have returned back to normal. The most recent show in the franchise has been such a success that there’s acase to be made for the team behindStar Wars: Skeleton Crewto take on a theatrical projectat LucasFilm. LikeThe Acolyte, Skeleton Crewhas taken a chance on a different sort of vibe from whatStar Warsusually offers but, unlike the former, has seemingly found a winning strategy for it. As forThe Acolyte, it’ll live on in spinoff projects until the landscape changes.
