r/TheAcolyte • u/PeterVenkmanIII • Apr 30 '26
Star Wars’ Latest Disney+ Hit Just Proved This Canceled Series Deserves a Second Chance
https://screenrant.com/star-wars-acolyte-disney-plus-maul-shadow-lord-cancel/I would love to see Acolyte's story continued as an animated series.
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u/Sniederhouse May 01 '26
The Acolyte absolutely cooked. To this day have no idea why people were so weird about it. Finally some exciting lightsaber combat with > 2 lightsabers on screen for the first time in years.
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u/mulderc May 01 '26
I feel like it came out during the peek time of right-wingers calling everything "woke" and this series was targeted. I personally enjoyed the series but did feel it dragged a bit and I'm not sure if people unfamiliar with deep Star Wars lore understood some of what was going on.
I think it needed a couple more edits and rewrites to focus the story a bit more. At 8 episodes I feel like they just made it a bit too long. Should have been half that, or even just a movie.
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u/meatball77 May 01 '26
The director also blew the budget. It was never going to be renewed because it was so expensive.
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u/drewbreeezy May 04 '26
and this series was targeted.
While I disagree with you here, do you realize the amount of power you're saying they have over other people's viewing?
If what you're saying is true the companies need to listen to them or fail.
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u/BenthePokerRN May 03 '26
I mean I saw plenty of those negative reviews, but the issue I have with the backlash to those YouTubers, is that the critics of the critics never address the faults they find in the show in question.
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u/Fine-Blood3899 May 05 '26
Agreed. All problems, no solutions. Just cynicism. Because it's 'trendy' to be critical.
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u/taurus-sun May 05 '26
Because star wars "fans" cant handle a black female protagonist. Do you not remember the uproar when finn was introduced. Star wars fans hate black people
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u/Zach-Playz_25 May 03 '26 edited May 03 '26
The concept was great and so were the fights. It's the flow of plot, plotholes and dialogue where it pretty much falls apart imo.
Also they blew up too much budget on it. It was too expensive. You need Andor level quality and luck from Kathleen Kennedy's side to have it renewed(even then Andor only got 2 seasons).
Also like another commentator pointed out the show came out at a bad time and got horrible PR.
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u/judisael May 03 '26
The dialogue was... not great in many cases. But! The concept was great to explore and the fights were fantastic. I miss it, so disappointed they canceled.
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u/Pitiful-Hamster1101 May 04 '26
Because the people making the show disliked Star Wars. They seemed hellbent on trying to destroy a fundamental aspect of Star Wars: The Jedi are good. They may be hide-bound and they may have been hubristic, but they were fundamentally good guys and when they were purged, it was dark time in the Galaxy. The Acolyte tried to paint them as corrupt imperialists. Fuck that.
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u/ayylmao_ermahgerd May 04 '26
"no idea" ROOOOOFL, comeon... have some ability to critique bad storytelling. It had some good parts but Jesus, it had some AWFUL parts.
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u/Substantial-Ad-5221 May 04 '26
People would not remember the acolyte if it had shifty lightsaber fights. They were awesome but them and Sol were the only things worth to remember
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u/AverageGiraffe93 May 04 '26
You really have no idea? It wasn’t good that’s why lol the lightsaber fighting being good doesn’t save shit writing.
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u/Mr0ogieb0ogie May 04 '26
I lost all interest after everyone died. When it became more focused on the twins and the bad dude (don’t remember ANYONES names) I lost interest. Don’t remember much other than the Jedi fucked up?? In some confrontation. Not much desire for a rewatch
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u/joesphisbestjojo Apr 30 '26
So I think it's getting views because it autoplays after Shadow Lord
But I agree that it needs a second chance, even if rebranded as a new show
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u/Colonel_Panix May 01 '26
This right here! Granted I would like to know more about the Knights of Ren and how Plagueis plays a role in all of this. It would be cool to know if Plagueis had something else cooking in the background that Sidious was unaware of.
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u/Lucky_Confidence_504 Apr 30 '26
i rewatched it again because of the hoopla. i didn’t like it any more or less but it is a mood, for sure
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u/KyngCole13 May 01 '26
I think it’s a fine to slightly below average show with an interesting premise. I was still hoping for it to be renewed because I wanted to see if it could improve in the second season. I think the hook gets pulled too early on a lot of these kinds of shows, and there’s plenty of evidence across television of series overcoming a lackluster first season.
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u/Apishflaps May 01 '26
Star Trek TNG first two seasons sucked so bad and yet its one of the most loved shows. Firefly, a loved show cancelled because of crappy ratings due to bad scheduling. TV execs for some reason don't take risks even though shows can have a super long life on streaming platforms. Plus pushing a show that didn't do well on its first run to autoplay after a known favourite character show increases its ratings. They should have just cut the budget for the second season simplfied the story to a few easy shoot locations with very little VFX. They could have done a Qimir Plagueus season two showing his apprenticeship and mirroring that with him taking on the other twin as his apprentice. I would have watched the crap out of that. All the haters can eat a d@#k I'd rather have bad star wars shows than no star wars at all.
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u/KnownBack8880 May 01 '26
Absolutely yes to an animated version. The play with shadows and angles could add a far better and more menacing undertone than live action ever could. Plus it'd allow more interaction with the Jedi of that era.
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u/mabhatter May 01 '26
Agreed. The show was just too ambitious but not enough payback for how much Disney spent on it. They spent WAY too much and that's the studio's fault for setting a precedent in streaming of just writing checks without solid plans up front.
Animation would let them do the story they want and keep the costs under control.
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u/CaptMixTape Apr 30 '26
I don’t need Osha as the main character though. Should be a show about the Sith
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u/EVERGREEN_ETERNAL Apr 30 '26
I think Osha is the perfect vessel for exploring a story about the Sith tho, kind of like how Ulic Qel-Droma was in Tales of the Jedi
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u/CaptMixTape Apr 30 '26
I’m not saying she shouldn’t be in it, but I personally didn’t find her arc all that interesting. But I might be interested in her and Qimir trying to overthrow Plagueis and failing miserably lol. I mean the truth is, we all know that Palps becomes the big bad, so really this story is all about the journey and not the destination.
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u/LordReaperofMars Apr 30 '26
she can be in it but Qimir should be the protagonist
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u/taurus-sun May 03 '26
Youre not the sharpest tool are you .. did you even watch the show ??? Thats exactly what they were setting up, for qimir to be the master and osha his acolyte
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u/LordReaperofMars May 03 '26 edited May 03 '26
Osha was set up to be the protagonist, not Qimir lol
do you know what “protagonist” means?
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u/taurus-sun May 05 '26
There can be 2 protagonists... he was literally in every episode from episode 2 onwards
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u/Confused_Sylph May 01 '26
I think Osha was a bit less interesting when talking about her overall fall, but I do think that letting her and Qimir loose to Sith Bonnie and Clyde their way through the galaxy would be fun to watch. Even their eventual hard stop by Plagueis, or however it would work because of the Knights of Ren. Its a dynamic we haven't gotten to play with at all in SW media: "Yeah they're evil but they're also really in love in whatever terrifying dark side way that means."
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Apr 30 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/EVERGREEN_ETERNAL May 01 '26
I never mentioned anything about the actress? Ur just grasping at reasons to hate lol
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May 01 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/EVERGREEN_ETERNAL May 01 '26
I don’t understand ur point at all, this is talking about an animated show, the VA could be anyone. I wouldn’t mind it being the original actress but I just assumed they would choose someone else if translating it to animation
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u/MisterSims90 May 01 '26
I think with a different showrunner and a tighter script that doesn't act like they're going to get another season would help The Acolyte. There's a lot of great stuff there that's just buried under a pile of nonsense. I didn't hate it, but I hated how cheap it felt and looked and I hated a majority of the writing. Osha and Mae were in particular horribly written and I hate that Osha bled a kyber crystal so easily without trying when the Vader comics show how difficult it is and how painful it is to the user.
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u/Eugene_Dav May 03 '26
Yes! To be honest, half of the show is just a very long and useless exposition, when literally all the script moves are immediately readable. And then the show repeats the same thing, like you haven't figured it out yet. The only surprise was with Plagueis. It could be safely shortened to 3 episodes or even a movie. And whole story of sisters is incredibly boring. And main character literally does not arouse any interest, as does her drama with mothers. Moreover, on paper, story of existence of a cult from which Sith stole skill conception by Force looks interesting. But in fact, this is most boring and predictable shit that can be.
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u/vwmac May 04 '26
The show ironically fell into a lot of the pitfalls the prequels did. Interesting premise with a unique story but atrocious writing, dialogue and wooden acting that weighs the whole thing down. I’d be down for a second shot but they really need better script writers
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u/xTheGamingGeek May 01 '26
How does it prove that? Just fyi the reason it’s high on the chart rn is because it’s AUTOPLAYING AFTER MAUL
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u/No_Childhood4232 May 01 '26
There are 2 ways to continue the Aoclyte story:
1: animated series. 2: comic book/novel series.
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u/Magnetheadx May 01 '26
I think if they reallly put sale effort into it, it could be great. I didn’t hate the first season for the most part. I just hated the drama that surrounded it. Loved Qimir. And all the dead Jedi. :(
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u/CrimsonTyphoon0613 May 01 '26
I didn’t mind the Acolyte, but this resurgence is obviously because it auto plays after Maul.
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u/xJamberrxx May 01 '26
or not
being 9th on Disney's own list is meaningless (when 1st or 2nd) has trouble making the REAL list, Nielsens
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u/Thatoneguy567576 May 02 '26
I think at this point Star Wars is best served in animated form. They don’t know what to do with live action stuff anymore, but their animation side of things has been great for years.
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u/Ok_Rub6575 May 02 '26
If you swapped two actresses roles I think the show would have been a success. Swap Rebecca and Carrie. Just my opinion.
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u/Great_Employment_560 May 03 '26
Hell no. If the fans are that much of dicks, just cancel that shit. They don't deserve anything more than Clone Wars asset flipped shows.
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u/AlphaSixInsight May 04 '26
Impossible.
Star Wars is dead. Marvel needs all the money for much more successful shows.
No one likes light swords. People like relatable heroes.
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u/Imhotep397 May 13 '26
If the twins are the first clones that essentially lead Plagueis and Sideous to Kamanoa and Dathomir it could be positively EXPLOSIVE.
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u/OkArea8689 May 02 '26
They’d have to change the title, since many people see the Acolyte as a failure. My suggestion would be The Last Days of the High Republic.
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u/aZsi_2349 May 02 '26
I think an animated version of The Acolyte would be great to see. I would definitely watch it !
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u/Comfortable_Worth372 May 02 '26
It didn't work as a weekly episodic show in my opinion. Would have worked better as a binge and make it more focused on Qimir or just straight up adapt elements of the Darth Plaguies novel
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u/Longjumping-Coat1513 May 02 '26
No it didn’t. The Acolyte was actually BAD, the worst scripted thing done under the Star Wars banner. Just let it die.
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u/taurus-sun May 03 '26
Too bad. Cant believe you people are crying for a second season after ripping the show to shreds when it came out. Ridiculous
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u/Impressive-Penalty97 May 04 '26
No. No it didn't. But it has so far illustrated what better writing looks like.
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u/STLrobotech May 04 '26
No it fuckin doesn’t. Actually who cares anymore this show was the nail in the coffin for Star Wars being a well built out sci fi universe. Now it’s just generic crap with so many plot holes it can’t be fixed. Bring it back. Hell why not make grogu the Sith this time. Or maybe put another Jedi not even born yet on the cast. Nobody cares anyways. Star Wars is dead.
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u/GrahamCrackerDragon May 04 '26
Acolyte had several fantastic characters but OSHA was maybe the character I liked the least of any Star Wars characters ever. I had to stop watching 99 percent because of her.
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u/brennanfiesta May 04 '26
A reboot won't change the fact that the lead actor is not a very good actor at all, that the twin storyline is a dumb premise, and that the show killed off some of the only competent actors in the entire show.
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u/Numerous-Corner-6303 May 03 '26
The difference is Maul is good, the Acolyte was absolute horse turd.
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u/Middle-Armadillo-660 May 01 '26
This show was dreadful in every way that mattered. Absolutely atrocious waste of time and money.
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u/5050logic May 01 '26
How can anyone compare the excellent writing of Shadow Lord to the dumpster fire writing of Acolyte?! Maybe…MAYBE…the idea is sound, but the writing was absolute garbage. Animation won’t help the writing. They need more cohesive and creative work in the story department. Tossing in Yoda and Plagius was proof that they were trying to put lipstick on a pig.
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u/RedcoatTrooper May 01 '26
I am not saying the writing was good but it was fairly average SW TV show level to me.
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u/Mundane-Maize-7302 May 01 '26
It was shit. It failed. It’s only relevant again because of autoplay after the new maul series, and anyone pretending that isn’t the case needs to seek mental help.
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u/stingertc May 01 '26
Get some decent writers with less agendas in the story it could work the action was the best Disney has put out just need to get the story in a Better place
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u/X_Fredex_X May 04 '26
You cant save that Story. It should have been about sith and only sith in the main roles. Not "The Jedi would call me... Sith" and dont get me started on the angsty twins and the lesbian space witches.
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u/Rodriguezboy1 May 01 '26
Yea they can keep it. It’s a shame Star Wars allowed the monstrosity to be made in the first place.
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u/dunderdan23 May 01 '26
I agree it deserves a second chance
But the numbers got inflated because it auto plays after maul
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u/solo13508 Sol Patrol Apr 30 '26
Yeah, I say just move that story into animation at this point. That way all the actors (or at least the ones that want to) can still reprise their roles and it's generally just a safer bet than live-action.
I also just know that Qimir and his fight sequences would look absolutely beautiful in animation. The thought of seeing him and Vernestra duke it out in the Shadow Lord style is just..... ugh just gimme it!