STAR WARS: THE ACOLYTE Lead Amandla Stenberg On Exploring A New Time Period And Different Side Of The Force

STAR WARS: THE ACOLYTE Lead Amandla Stenberg On Exploring A New Time Period And Different Side Of The Force

With Star Wars: The Acolyte expected to premiere on Disney+ this summer, lead star Amandla Stenberg has talked more about exploring the High Republic era and delving into the Force in unexpected ways.

By JoshWilding - Feb 28, 2024 05:02 AM EST
Filed Under: Star Wars
Source: C Magazine (via SFFGazette.com)

It's been quite some time since we've heard anything about The Acolyte, a Star Wars TV series which will serve as Lucasfilm's first live-action story set during The High Republic Era.

The events of this show are expected to play out near the end of that, making it a prequel to The Phantom Menace and a project which likely sheds new light on how the Sith returned to power (rumours and theories that one of The Acolyte's leads will be Emperor Palpatine's one-time Master, Darth Plagueis, continue to swirl). 

C Magazine (via SFFGazette.com) recently spoke with Amandla Stenberg and the actress admitted she's "been feeling a little more trepidation than I thought" about joining the Star Wars Universe. 

However, The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland (Russian Doll) pitched the series to her in a way which made it hard to turn her down. "All the artwork was conceptualized with my face, and Leslye was like, 'So I’ve been working on this for about three or four years for you. I don’t know what I’m going to do if you don’t do it. No pressure.' So I was sent to the moon, of course."

The publication's piece on Stenberg confirms she's the titular Jedi Padawan The Acolyte is named after and the actress and musician went on to tease the scale of the story the show will tell by suggesting it takes a deep dive into the inner workings of the Force and those who wield it. 

"In the context of the Star Wars universe, it’s a time of great peace, theoretically," she says of the High Republic era. "It’s also a time of an institution, and it’s a time in which conceptions around the Force are very strict. And I think what we’re trying to explore within our show is when an institution has a singular conception of how power can be used."

"We try to provide a lot of different perspectives and answers to that question. The idea is to kind of honor the ethos of Star Wars and ideas around the Force and also challenge them, hopefully harmoniously."

The Acolyte will take viewers into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers in the final days of the High Republic era with the story of former Padawan who reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes but discovers the forces they confront are more sinister than they ever anticipated. 

The series stars Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Charlie Barnett, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Dean-Charles Chapman, Carrie-Anne Moss, Margarita Levieva and Joonas Suotamo.

In addition to writing and directing, Leslye Headland serves as an executive producer with Kathleen Kennedy, Simon Emanuel, Jeff F. King and Jason Micallef. Rayne Roberts and Damian Anderson produce. As for the rest of the show's writing team, that's said to include Jason Milcallef, Charmaine De Grate, Jasmyne Flournoy, Eileen Shim, Claire Kiechef, Kor Adana, Cameron Squires, Jocelyn Bioh, and Jen Richards.

The Acolyte is rumoured to premiere on Disney+ this summer. 

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jst5
jst5 - 2/28/2024, 5:23 AM
"It's the typical Disney cluster of mess" that's a comment from someone who has knowledge of this show....same ole same ole.
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/28/2024, 10:40 AM
@jst5 - where did you get that quote from, because I can't find it in the article
jst5
jst5 - 2/28/2024, 1:32 PM
@bkmeijer1 - It's not in an article....
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/28/2024, 1:51 PM
@jst5 - gotcha. Just wondering where or who it comes from
jst5
jst5 - 2/29/2024, 7:45 AM
@bkmeijer1 - Someone that has knowledge of the show....put it like that.
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/29/2024, 9:01 AM
@jst5 - gotcha. Don't blame me for taking it with a grain of salt though
jst5
jst5 - 2/29/2024, 9:48 AM
@bkmeijer1 - No problem...but if you've seen my post over the years in the comments...you'd know I always end up being right.All about who you know!
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/29/2024, 10:09 AM
@jst5 - can't say I really keep track of comments. If you're confident about your source though, why not write an article about it?
jst5
jst5 - 2/29/2024, 1:08 PM
@bkmeijer1 - Why would I want to do that?
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/29/2024, 1:30 PM
@jst5 - if you're keen on sharing them I guess. If not though, dropping them in the comments wirks fine. Just think the reach is smaller that way.
jst5
jst5 - 2/29/2024, 1:49 PM
@bkmeijer1 Nah...there is no value in wasting the time writing an article on it....no money in it.I've been dropping info in the comments for years.Was 5 for 5 in saying what movies and shows would bomb from last year....and I posted that info in the comments months before release.

The Acoltye is a cluster of mess.....which is par for the course with most Disney SW content.
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/29/2024, 5:27 PM
@jst5 - D+ has definitely put out shows that could've been so much better. Not hard to believe which those were beforehand
TheVandalore
TheVandalore - 2/28/2024, 5:34 AM
This might be the first show I miss, unless I hear it's actually worth checking out. If the quality dips at a restaurant I like, I stop eating there for a while and don't trust when they come out with something new that it will be good like before. Sometimes your favorite establishment gets new management and the place goes down hill.... I don't just keep eating there...
tylerzero
tylerzero - 2/28/2024, 6:08 AM
@TheVandalore -

That's precisely my current sentiments toward Marvel. After I forced myself to chew and swallow Secret Invasion, I left the table.
TheVandalore
TheVandalore - 2/28/2024, 6:58 AM
@tylerzero - yeah, same.
marvel72
marvel72 - 2/28/2024, 8:21 AM
@TheVandalore - Exactly I jumped of the train after Avengers:Endgame, not everything but I pick and choose what I watch now, especially after Thor:Love And Thunder was utter crap. Most of the Disney Plus shows I start but don't finish.
Fogs
Fogs - 2/28/2024, 8:22 AM
@TheVandalore, @tylerzero

I pretty much quit SW after Obi Wan. Didn't watch Mando S3 or Andor (I'm not of a Rogue One fan as most people).

Marvel is complicated too. Didn't rewatch Eternals (got sleepy there), watched 1 ep of SW, didn't check The Marvels .. my only gripe was not watching GoTG3 in the theaters, it's a good one.

I'm probably checking DP3 out but not much else so far. Regarding SW I don't really expect to watch anything, so far.

Unbelievable the effect they managed to have in part of the fandom with such a quality drop on both IPs.
Fogs
Fogs - 2/28/2024, 8:23 AM
**watched 1 ep of SI
TheVandalore
TheVandalore - 2/28/2024, 8:26 AM
@marvel72 - I've been keeping up with everything, but not like I used to when it was made with respect for the comics like the early days of the MCU and it's highest moments. Now all these agenda driven woke box checking manufactured soulless products... I still watch but I don't give them my ratings or coin, if you catch my meaning. I stay current so I can be privy of the state it's in, but until they respect the material, they won't get any support from me. That's the only way they take the feedback seriously.

But I might not even watch Acolyte... At all.
TheVandalore
TheVandalore - 2/28/2024, 8:33 AM
@Fogs - yeah, it's crazy because Disney was a beloved brand when I was a kid... Now it's very political and grimey.
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 2/28/2024, 5:39 AM
I like this one. I like the way she speaks. I'm immediately attracted to her.
lazlodaytona
lazlodaytona - 2/28/2024, 5:43 AM
"It's been quite some time since we've heard anything about The Acolyte..."

Um, maybe because a large chunk of your Disney+ viewerships have been turned off by so many bad, nope, VERY BAD series that D+ has been churning out for the last few years in both the Star Wars and Marvel universes.
Odekahn
Odekahn - 2/28/2024, 7:55 AM
Pass
AnthonyVonGeek
AnthonyVonGeek - 2/28/2024, 9:22 AM
Well honestly

Cause
CaptainCheese
CaptainCheese - 2/29/2024, 8:12 AM
@AnthonyVonGeek - This is the correct answer! It's so freeing to drop your Disney+ subscription and cut your brain off from garbage viewing.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 2/28/2024, 9:39 AM
That’s cool to hear that she seemed to be the first & only choice for the role , that’s gotta be very flattering (and pressure inducing) to hear as an actor obviously…

However I don’t think I have seen any of her work , how is she and any suggestions from the people that have?.

I know she voiced “Spider Byte” in Across The Spiderverse and while it wasn’t a big role , I thought she did well with the little she had.

TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 2/28/2024, 9:40 AM
Anyway , this sounds interesting and I can’t wait to see it…

The discussions apparently around the concept of The Force from different perspectives sounds like it could be interesting and reminds me of the conversations around Super Soldiers & the serum in FATWS , if it’s as compelling as that aspect was then I’m down for it!!.

This is probably my most anticipated SW project right now!!.

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