A darkness rises as The Acolyte trailer takes Star Wars fans deep into the High Republic 100 years before the events of The Phantom Menace. Originally introduced through a series of interconnected books, short films and The Young Jedi Adventures, this is a darker tale of those adaptations.
The Acolyte stars Amandla Stenberg as a former padawan who teams up with a Jedi Master (Lee Jung-jae) to investigate a series of murders that could lead up to something so dark neither of them can prepare for. What makes this series so tantalizing is this series explores life from the perspective of The Dark Side.
As seen in the trailer, Lee Jung-jae’s Jedi Master is educating a group of Padawans to not trust their own deceitful eyes, something that is reverberated throughout the trailer and the series’ overall narrative.
Described as a mystery-thriller, The Acolyte was influenced by samurai films, wuxia films, but also and Rashomon. Each episode will explore different perspectives on the same events. Jung-jae and Stenberg’s characters have a history, and viewers will see both of their perspectives on their conflict.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Star Wars: The Acolyte creator Leslye Headland revealed, “You definitely get the point of view of the Jedi, especially in terms of Amandla’s character and trying to stop her and hunt her down. But you also get enough of Amandla’s character’s perspective that you can also see how both of them exist simultaneously.”
She also described the series as, “My elevator pitch was Frozen meets Kill Bill. It is a serialized story, so each episode gives you more information about the story. It’s more about individualized relationships. You’re in the headspace of a lot of different characters. People who are good guys can be bad guys, and people who are bad guys can be good guys. There’s a lot of moral ambiguity, which is why Jodie’s [Turner-Smith] line in the trailer is so important: “This isn’t about good or bad; this is about power and who is allowed to use it.” And I believe, of course, that the Jedi are a benevolent, well-intentioned institution, but they are an institution and they have amassed all the power. So, the question becomes when did that happen, and since we know where they’re headed in Phanton Menace, what went wrong? What are the cracks in that? So, you definitely get the point of view of the Jedi, especially in terms of Amandla’s character and trying to stop her and hunt her down. But you also get enough of Amandla’s character’s perspective that you can also see how both of them exist simultaneously.”
Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Charlie Barnett and Carrie-Anne Moss also star. Michael Abels, the musician behind Nope and Bad Education, will compose the score for the show.
The eight-episode series premieres June 4 on Disney+.
The Acolyte is one of two new Star Wars shows premiering this year. Skeleton Crew, from Spider-Man: No Way Home filmmaker Jon Watts, is also due to debut in 2024 and stars Jude Law. That series follows a scrappy group of kids who get lost and go on an adventure, and was inspired by Goonies and E.T.
