The Acolyte (TV series): Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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* Shoot to Midnight

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| budget = ~~$180~~230.1 million<ref name="~~NYTMay2024~~DisneyBudget" />

| network = [[Disney+]]

| first_aired = {{Start date|2024|6|4}}

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[[Amandla Stenberg]], [[Lee Jung-jae]], [[Charlie Barnett (actor)|Charlie Barnett]], [[Dafne Keen]], [[Rebecca Henderson]], [[Jodie Turner-Smith]], [[Carrie-Anne Moss]], [[Manny Jacinto]], [[Dean-Charles Chapman]], [[Joonas Suotamo]], [[Margarita Levieva]], Lauren Brady, Leah Brady, [[Harry Trevaldwyn]], and [[David Harewood]] star in the series. Headland expressed interest in working on the ''Star Wars'' franchise by the end of 2019, and was developing a new series for [[Lucasfilm]] by April 2020. She wanted to explore the franchise from the perspective of the villains. The title was announced in December 2020. Filming took place at Shinfield Studios in [[Berkshire]] from October 2022 to June 2023, with location filming in Wales and Portugal.

''The Acolyte'' premiered on Disney+ with its first two episodes on June 4, 2024. The following six episodes were released weekly through July 16. On [[Rotten Tomatoes]] and [[Metacritic]], critic reviews indicated generally favorable reception. The series, which divided fans of the franchise, received lower viewership ratings than previous ''Star Wars'' series and became the subject of a [[review bomb]]ing campaign. It was cancelled in August 2024 due to low viewership aand ~~negative~~going ~~critics~~over budget.

== Premise ==

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|WrittenBy = Kor Adana and Cameron Squires

|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2024|6|25}}

|ShortSummary = Mae's master kills all the Jedi except Yord, Jecki, and Sol. Sol saves Osha from Mae's master and demands that he reveal his identity. He claims that they have already met and then vanishes into the forest. Jecki captures Mae, but her master arrives to kill Mae for trying to betray him. Jecki breaks his brittle helmet before she is killed, revealing him to be Qimir. Sol ~~arrives and~~ questions Qimir, who says the Jedi might call him "[[Sith]]" and he now intends to kill them all to keep his existence secret. Yord ambushes Qimir, disarming him, but is quickly killed. Sol fights and overpowers Qimir but is stopped from killing him by Osha, who plants a light on Qimir that causes a colony of umbramoths to attack and carry him away. Mae uses Osha's stun gun on Sol so she can speak with Osha, but they end up arguing about each other's choices and Mae uses the Force to knock Osha unconscious. Mae steals Osha's clothes and poses as her sister, returning with Sol to the Jedi ship. They are followed by a suspicious Bazil. Qimir frees himself from the umbramoths and finds Osha unconscious in the forest.

|LineColor = 701811

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At the premiere of the film ''[[Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker]]'' (2019), television writer [[Leslye Headland]] was asked about her interest in the ''[[Star Wars]]'' franchise and revealed that she was a big fan with many ideas for ''Star Wars'' films that she wanted to make if she was asked to by [[Lucasfilm]] president [[Kathleen Kennedy (producer)|Kathleen Kennedy]].<ref name="HeadlandEp9Premiere" /> Headland contacted Lucasfilm to discuss her ideas after completing work on her television series ''[[Russian Doll (TV series)|Russian Doll]]'' (2019–2022), and [[Pitch (filmmaking)|pitched]] a new ''Star Wars'' television series with a first-season outline and full [[series bible]]. Kennedy agreed to begin work on the series during that initial pitch meeting.<ref name="HeadlandMar2024THR" /> In April 2020, Headland was publicly revealed to be writing and [[showrunning]] a new female-centric ''Star Wars'' series for the streaming service [[Disney+]]. Staffing for the series had begun and it was expected to be set in a different part of the franchise's timeline from previous ''Star Wars'' projects.<ref name="VarietyApr2020" />

Lucasfilm confirmed Headland's series was in development on May 4, 2020, which is ''Star Wars'' Day.<ref name="HeadlandConfirmed" /> At [[Disney]]'s Investor Day event on December 10, Kennedy announced the title, ''The Acolyte'', and said the series was set at the end of the [[Star Wars: The High Republic|High Republic]] era before the events of the [[Skywalker Saga|main ''Star Wars'' films]].<ref name="LucasfilmProjects" /> Lucasfilm executive Rayne Roberts was developing the series with Headland,<ref name="Roberts" /> who was influenced by the games and novels of the [[Star Wars in other media|''Star Wars'' Expanded Universe]] (EU).<ref name="VanityFairMay2022Acolyte" /> The first season consists of eight episodes,<ref name="FilmingLocation" /> with Headland directing the first two.<ref name="Mar2024DetailsSW" /> Alex Garcia Lopez and [[Kogonada]] were hired to direct episodes by February 2023,<ref name="KogonadaGarcia" /> and [[Hanelle Culpepper]] was revealed to have directed episodes in March 2024. Executive producers include Headland, Kennedy, Simon Emanuel, [[Jeff F. King]], and Jason Micallef, with Roberts, Damian Anderson, Eileen Shim, and Rob Bredow producing.<ref name="Mar2024DetailsSW" /> The ~~budget~~series ~~was~~went over its budget, reported to be $180 million, crossing $230.1 million by the end of September 2023 when it was in post-production.<ref name="DisneyBudget" /><ref name="NYTMay2024" /> Disney received $46.5 million from the UK government's 25.5% Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit.<ref name="DisneyBudget" />

In March 2024, Headland said she had pitched multiple seasons of the series to Lucasfilm and had a plan for a second season if it was ordered. However, she wanted to take a break after the first season was released due to its long production timeline, and so she could respond to any feedback from fans on the first season when developing the second.<ref name="HeadlandMar2024Collider" /> After the first season had been released in July, Headland said she had not heard anything from Lucasfilm about making a second season but noted that she had set up future storylines in the first-season finale.<ref name="HeadlandJul2024EW" /> In August, the series was canceled after one season when Lucasfilm opted not to continue with the series.<ref name="SeriesCanceledDeadline" /> This was reportedly due to going over budget and having low viewership,<ref name="DisneyBudget" /><ref name="SeriesCanceledTHR" /> with Disney+ having a "high viewership threshold for renewing high-end, big-budget series".<ref name="SeriesCanceledDeadline" /> ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' speculated that evolving viewing habits in the streaming era and "the erosion of goodwill of the ''Star Wars'' brand" also factored into the decision.<ref name="SeriesCanceledTHR" />

=== Writing ===

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At [[Star Wars Celebration#Celebration Europe 2023|''Star Wars'' Celebration London]] in April 2023, [[Joonas Suotamo]] was revealed to be part of the cast as [[Wookiee]] Jedi Kelnacca. Suotamo previously portrayed the Wookiee [[Chewbacca]] in the [[sequel trilogy]] films and ''[[Solo: A Star Wars Story]]'' (2018).<ref name="CelebrationLondonEW" /> Also at the convention, Lee, Keen, Barnett, Henderson, and Moss were revealed to be playing Jedi,<ref name="CelebrationLondonGizmodo" /> with Henderson cast as High Republic character Vernestra Rwoh.<ref name="Rwoh" /> In March 2024, Headland said Vernestra was the only character from the High Republic books that would appear in the first season, but there were other High Republic characters that she hoped to include in a potential second season. She felt Vernestra was important for showing the state of the Jedi Order in the series, contrasting her role as a leader in the Order with the young prodigy she is depicted as in the books.<ref name="HeadlandMar2024Collider" /> Also that month, character details for most of the main cast were revealed: Stenberg as the mysterious warrior Mae, Lee as Jedi Master Sol, Jacinto as former smuggler Qimir, Keen as [[Padawan (Star Wars)|Padawan]] learner Jecki Lon, Barnett as Jedi Knight Yord Fandar, Turner-Smith as coven-leader Mother Aniseya, and Moss as Jedi Master Indara.<ref name="Mar2024DetailsCB" /> Headland said it was a "no-brainer" to cast Moss as Indara given Headland was inspired by Moss's portrayal of [[Trinity (The Matrix)|Trinity]] in [[The Matrix (franchise)|''The Matrix'' film series]] when creating the character.<ref name="IndaraTrinity" />

In April 2024, [[David Harewood]] was reported to have a small role in the series.<ref name="Harewood" /> At the end of May, a week before the series premiered, Headland confirmed longstanding rumors that Stenberg was actually portraying two characters: Mae and her twin sister Osha.<ref name="OshaMaeGMA" /><ref name="OshaMaeSR" /> She also said major characters from the films, such as [[Yoda]] who is alive during the series' time period, would not be appearing;<ref name="NoYoda" /> despite this, Yoda is seen in a brief [[cameo appearance]].<ref name="Plagueis" /> A younger version of the Jedi [[Ki-Adi-Mundi]], a character from the prequel films, also appears. Derek Arnold took over for performer [[Silas Carson]].<ref name="Arnold" />

=== Design ===

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[[File:Manny Jacinto at the 2018 Comic-Con International (42913094245) (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|Manny Jacinto portrays the Stranger in the series, who became a standout character for fans]]

Following the release of the first-season finale, an online campaign advocating for a second season gained traction. Thousands of social media posts were made using the hashtag "#RenewTheAcolyte", and included positive comments about different elements of the series.<ref name="RenewTheAcolyteCB" /><ref name="RenewTheAcolyteSR" /> Dirk Libbey at ''[[CinemaBlend]]'' said this was proof that the review bombing did not reflect the views of the entire audience and he was happy to see ''The Acolyte'' go viral for a positive reason following all of the negativity it had faced.<ref name="RenewTheAcolyteCinemaBlend" /> Following the series' cancellation in August 2024, ''Variety'' discussed how ''The Acolyte'' had experienced "wildly opposing reception from fans". Some fans and critics enjoyed how the series challenged previous perceptions of the Jedi through the choices of Master Sol, while other fans felt ''The Acolyte'' was antithetical to ''Star Wars''{{'}}s good vs. evil themes and disliked how the series expanded upon the Force mythology.<ref name="SeriesCanceledVariety" /> ''Deadline Hollywood'' said the series was "divisive" amongst fans.<ref name="SeriesCanceledDeadline" /> Stenberg was not surprised by the cancellation because of the cast receiving a "rampage of... hyper-conservative bigotry and vitriol, prejudice, hatred and hateful language" since the series was announced.<ref name="StenbergCancellationResponse" /> Multiple publications found Jacinto's the Stranger to be a standout character among fans of the series,<ref name="SeriesCanceledTHR" /><ref name="SeriesCanceledVariety" /> and noted that some fans had been excited for where the series could go in a second season following the "tantalizing" story points and characters teased at the end of the first season.<ref name="SeriesCanceledTHR" /><ref name="SeriesCanceledVariety" /><ref name="SeriesCanceledGizmodo" /> Fans launched several social movements to try reverse the cancellation, with the hashtag "#SaveTheAcolyte" trending on [[X Twitter|X]],<ref name="SaveTheAcolyte" /> and a [[Change.org]] petition accumulating more than 50,000 signatures by August 27.<ref name="ChangePetition" />

=== Lawsuit ===

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<ref name="SeriesCanceledTHR">{{Cite web |last1=Phillips |first1=Zoe G. |last2=Kit |first2=Borys |date=August 19, 2024 |title='The Acolyte' Season Two Not Moving Forward at Lucasfilm |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/the-acolyte-canceled-star-wars-1235978593/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820014002/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/the-acolyte-canceled-star-wars-1235978593/ |archive-date=August 20, 2024 |access-date=August 19, 2024 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref>

<ref name="DisneyBudget">{{Cite web |last=Reid |first=Caroline |date=September 26, 2024 |title=Disney Reveals Star Wars Show ''The Acolyte'' Was Over Budget At $230 Million |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinereid/2024/09/26/disney-reveals-star-wars-show-the-acolyte-was-over-budget-at-230-million/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240926080836/https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinereid/2024/09/26/disney-reveals-star-wars-show-the-acolyte-was-over-budget-at-230-million/ |archive-date=September 26, 2024 |access-date=September 29, 2024 |website=[[Forbes]]}}</ref>

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[[Category:2020s American drama television series]]

[[Category:2020s American science fiction television series]]

[[Category:2020s American ~~LGBT~~LGBTQ-related drama television series]]

[[Category:2024 American television series debuts]]

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