At a Glance
The Acolyte aired its first season finale in July 2024. A month later, Deadline reported that the show had been canceled with a second season no longer in production.
Key Facts
Release Date: July 16, 2024
Seasons: 1
Total Episodes: 8
Creator: Leslye Headland
Where to Watch: Disney+
When: 100 years before The Phantom Menace
Recent Coverage
What is The Acolyte?
One hundred years before the events of The Phantom Menace, The Acolyte follows a series of crimes perpetrated against the Jedi by a mysterious assassin. As the Jedi pursue this mystery, a former padawan is reunited with her master, old sins once thought covered begin to reemerge, and a new darkness threatens to cover the entire Order. As the first live-action Star Wars series set in The High Republic era, The Acolyte breaks new ground in terms of storytelling, intrigue, and action which results in the best lightsaber duels seen onscreen since Revenge of the Sith. The series was unfortunately canceled after its first season, leaving a number of plotlines unresolved with the hope that future mediums will pick them up at a later date.
What is The High Republic?
The High Republic is the era of Star Wars that takes place a few hundred years before The Phantom Menace where the Jedi are supposedly at the height of their power. Originally started as a publishing initiative including books and comics, The High Republic eventually branched out into shows like The Acolyte and Young Jedi Adventures. For more information, check out our getting started guide or The High Republic tag!
About The Acolyte
Leslye Headland
Disney+
TV-14
Action-adventure, Drama
35-49 minutes
1
8
Michael Abels
100 years before The Phantom Menace
Cast
When Does The Acolyte Take Place in the Star Wars Timeline?
The Acolyte is set in the Star Wars timeline approximately one hundred years before the events of Episode I: The Phantom Menace, making it part of the era known as the High Republic period.
Reviews
Story and Characters
The Acolyte begins with a murder mystery surrounding the Jedi. An assassin in killing various members of the Order, and Master Sol is tasked with bringing in the assumed killer who is thought to be his former apprentice. However, it is revealed that the former Padawan, Osha, has a twin sister, Mae, who is responsible for the destruction of the various masters.
As the show goes on, more about Osha and Mae’s past is revealed as well as the role that Sol and his compatriots played in the most disastrous night of their lives. But while Sol attempts to discover Mae’s motivations alongside his allies, Mae continues her Dark path at the behest of a masked master known only as The Stranger.
A thrilling mystery that combines Dark Side myth with the cracks that are beginning to spread within the Jedi Order, The Acolyte tells one of the most thrilling Star Wars stories to date while presenting some of the best lightsaber action seen in decades.
Mae Aniseya
Arc
A child left to her own destruction, Mae begins the show as a force for darkness with a singular purpose: to destroy those that wronged her. Throughout the series, this rage eventually gives way to the fear that has always lingered behind it, and the truth of her past changes the way she sees the galaxy forever.
Significance
Mae continuously wishes to become the titular Acolyte throughout the series, and her dual role as protagonist and antagonist propels much of the action and mystery.
Osha Aniseya
Arc
A former Padawan who had to leave the Order, Osha’s journey is one of the most fascinating and heartbreaking in the entire show. As she discovers more secrets held from her by those she trusted most, her faith in the very foundation that created her erodes until there’s almost nothing left.
Significance
Osha is the main protagonist of the show, and through her, we witness the ideals of the Jedi as well as their faults as she attempts to reckon with the continuously shifting reality of her life.
Master Sol
Arc
A Jedi master who exhibits both serenity and empathy, Sol enters The Acolyte as the perfect teacher. In his search for Osha, secrets about his path come to light and reveal instead a man who has done his best to atone for his transgressions.
Significance
Sol represents the best that the Jedi have to offer in this era, and although he fails in his impossible mission to save everyone in every moment, his continual belief in the power of light and good stays with him throughout the series.
Qimir
Arc
An unlikely ally to the Jedi’s mission, Qimir helps introduce Osha to the wider galaxy outside the Order. One of the more comic characters the show has to offer, Qimir uses humor and relatability to break down the structures of the Order so he can ask Osha the questions she has potentially been avoiding for years.
Significance
A conduit for Osha’s journey and an aid to Sol’s mission to capture Mae, Qimir serves as an incredibly helpful in between to connect various parts of the story together. His levity, however, is more often than not a mask to hide his wit and intelligence which he constantly uses to dissect the true intentions of the Jedi.
Vernestra Rwoh
Arc
From the pages of The High Republic initiative, Vernestra Rwoh enters The Acolyte as a revered master who has led the Jedi for many years. As the series continues, her dedication to keeping the Order out of harm’s way begins to reveal itself, leaving the audience to question her true intentions.
Significance
Vernestra ties the show to the original source material of The High Republic publishing initiative where she was seen as a young Jedi Knight. As a Jedi Master, she represents the will of the Council and the voice of the Jedi bureaucracy which she constantly balances against her dedication to the truth and her friendship with Sol.
Yord Fandar
Arc
A proud Jedi Knight and staunch follower of all rules, Yord acts as the moral center of The Acolyte. His presence on the mission to discover the Jedi assassin ensures that the team remains on task, although he does learn to loosen his grip on the reigns as he observes how leniency can be used for the greater good.
Significance
Yord’s presence in the show allows Osha to connect with her past as a Padawan as the two previously traversed the ranks together. His apparent stoicism also allows for moments of levity amidst the darker turns the show tends to take.
Jecki Lon
Arc
Despite only being a Padawan, Jecki’s presence exudes maturity far beyond her age. She ensures that Yord never gets too big for his own skin while simultaneously acting as a confidant for Osha…and possibly more.
Significance
Jecki’s role on the team is one of extreme competence. Throughout the show, she showcases not only her skills as a detective but also as a warrior whenever she is called upon.
Key Episodes
Episode 1: Lost/Found
The pilot reveals the murder at the center of The Acolyte’s mystery and introduces the main players including Mae, Osha, and the members of the Jedi Order.
Episode 5: Night
One of the most action packed episodes in all of Star Wars television, the Jedi come face to face with a deadly foe who puts every ounce of training they’ve ever had to the test.
Episode 8: The Acolyte
Design
The Acolyte is the first live-action Star Wars project set in The High Republic era. Because this era represents the Golden Age of the Jedi, much of the design of the series is more reminiscent of the Prequel films rather than other show like The Mandalorian and Ahsoka. The costuming of the Jedi features more whites and golds than the classic browns of the monks we see later in the saga, and there is a sense of regality to the Jedi before they begin their fall.
Aside from the Order, however, the look of The Acolyte fits perfectly within the existing filmography of the saga. The show offers a variety of different planets with varied environments, and they each feel properly lived in and even rugged at times – a sharp contrast to the clean, clear aesthetic of the visiting Jedi.
The inclusion of an original Dark Side character also allows The Acolyte to experiment with SIth-esque imagery for the first time since the introduction of Kylo Ren in The Force Awakens. The Stranger’s look is simultaneously iconic and disturbing, and the combination of their menacing stature with the light of the Jedi and the rugged aesthetic of the surrounding galaxy creates one of the most cohesive and well-rounded designs of any Star Wars show thus far.
Technology and Effects
Special effects
As opposed to The Mandalorian or Ahsoka that use ‘The Volume’ technology to create their sets and landscapes, The Acolyte harkens back to the Original Trilogy by embracing practical filming methods and more physical sets. By shooting on sets in Shinfield Studios in Berkshire and Arborfield Studios, Wokingham, the show is able to access a more tactile element when it comes to creating a more lived in atmosphere for its planets - an element enhanced even further with scenes filmed on location in Wales and on the Portuguese island of Madeira. Naturally, as with any Star Wars project, there is a mixture of virtual photography present in the creation of The Acolyte (especially with the more martial fight scenes), but the practical backbone of the production process creates an unmistakably realistic aesthetic for the series.
Behind the Scenes
Leslye Headland was chosen to create The Acolyte after her work on Netflix’s hit series, Russian Doll. In the leadup to the show’s release, Headland repeatedly mentioned her desire to tell a story about the Jedi at the height of their power mixed with a story of what the dormant Sith were up to during the same time period. Steeped in Legends lore from years of personal fandom, Headland was sure to bring in as many references to the EU as possible during her creation of the show - leading to some of the most impactful cameo appearances in Star Wars television thus far.
Leading up to The Acolyte’s premiere, the show was review bombed by angry audiences who disagreed with the casting choices for many of the lead characters and proceeded to coordinate efforts to diminish the show’s ratings on popular sites like imdb and Rotten Tomatoes before a single episode was released. These racist attacks continued throughout the show and were addressed by many of the cast members through interviews and on social media. Unfortunately, despite a largely positive fan community, these attacks overshadowed much of the discourse surrounding the show during its run and continued through its cancellation.
Related TV Shows & Films
The High Republic Initiative
Originally a publishing initiative of books and comics, The High Republic brings together a series of books and comics that define the era of The Acolyte. Along with setting up the era itself, the books also introduce Vernestra Rwoh who appears in the series.
The High Republic: Young Jedi Adventures
An animated show geared towards younger Star Wars viewers, Young Jedi Adventures takes characters from The High Republic Initiative and sets them off on a series of playful adventures for the whole family.
Books & Comics Related to The Acolyte
Top Critics
“The show refreshes the franchise by remixing some of the films’ more potent archetypes while remaining accessible to neophytes.”
- Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post
“What perhaps makes The Acolyte such an engaging and addictive watch (over the first four episodes screened for critics, at least) is its commitment to not treating the Jedi (or the Star Wars franchise writ large) as untouchable.”
- Manuel Betancourt, AV Club
“It's the ideas that flourish in "The Acolyte"—mining the rich mythology of the universe to explore how our childhoods scar us, and what we do with that pain.”
- Clint Worthington, RogerEbert.com
"Exhibiting influences that blend martial-arts movies, young-adult fiction and the detective genre, it’s an intriguing if modest addition whose lack of connection to existing canon proves both an advantage and disadvantage."
- Brian Lowry, CNN.com
