THE ACOLYTE: New Details On Why Series Was Cancelled Revealed Along With A-List Actor Who Almost Played Sol

THE ACOLYTE: New Details On Why Series Was Cancelled Revealed Along With A-List Actor Who Almost Played Sol

Some new details on Lucasfilm's reasons for deciding not to move forward with a second season of The Acolyte have come to light...

By MarkCassidy - Aug 24, 2024 10:08 AM EST
Filed Under: Star Wars

Earlier this week, we got word that Lucasfilm/Disney will not be moving forward with a second season of The Acolyte despite several major storylines and character arcs being left unresolved by the end of the season 1 finale.

The decision was met with a mixture of indifference and disappointment, but it's very clear that a lot of Star Wars fans - and some of the actors involved with the show - were surprised by this development.

Showrunner Leslye Headland was hoping to be able to continue her High Republic era-set tale, and rumor has it that the studio was planning a second season up until fairly recently.

So, what happened?

Despite speculation that the negative backlash from many Star Wars fans contributed to the decision, Jeff Sneider (via SFFGazette.com) is reporting that The Acolyte was cancelled because it didn't get enough viewers, plain and simple.

"Insiders explain that The Acolyte was canceled because viewership was bad, and that there’s really nothing more to it than that even though at least one cast member said they were surprised by the decision. I’m told that The Acolyte’s viewership collapsed following the first two episodes, whereas with Andor, viewership steadily climbed throughout the season, so the show was renewed for Season 2. Andor also drew exceptional reviews, whereas The Acolyte’s reviews were more mixed.

Like all shows, The Acolyte was subject to an extensive notes process, but at the end of the day, it was very much the show that Headland wanted to make."

Sneider also commented on a recent rumor that Keanu Reeves was originally up for a role in the series, and believes he was indeed Headland's first choice to play Jedi Master Sol. Apparently, a scheduling conflict prevented him from signing on, and the part went to Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae.

Don't be surprised if we see Reeves take a trip to the Galaxy Far, Far Away at some point though, as "Lucasfilm remains high on the actor, whose interest has been noted internally."

Finally, Sneider claims that persistent rumors about Kathleen Kennedy's exit are just that, and the Lucasfilm head's "job is safe through at least Q2 of next year."

How do you feel about The Acolyte's cancellation? Drop us a comment down below.

In The Acolyte, an investigation into a shocking crime spree pits a respected Jedi Master (Lee Jung-jae) against a dangerous warrior from his past (Amandla Stenberg). As more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all is not what it seems.

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

Leslye Headland created the series, based on Star Wars by George Lucas, and serves as an executive producer along with Kathleen Kennedy, Simon Emanuel, Jeff F. King and Jason Micallef. Charmaine DeGraté and Kor Adana are the co-executive producers. Rayne Roberts, Damian Anderson, Eileen Shim and Rob Bredow are the producers.

Headland also directed the premiere episodes (Eps. 101 & 102). Directors Kogonada (Eps. 103 & 107), Alex Garcia Lopez (Eps. 104 & 105) and Hanelle Culpepper (Eps. 106 & 108) round out the directing duties on the series.

"I really wanted to tell a story about the Sith," Headland told EW in a recent interview. "That was kind of my dream Star Wars idea. But it felt like the time period to do that in would be something pre-Phantom Menace. That seemed to be the most interesting trajectory for the Sith: How did the Sith go from the Rule of Two and being quote-unquote 'extinct' to Palpatine coming into power without the Jedi knowing about it?"

Award-winning composer Michael Abels, known for his work on Get Out and Us, scored The Acolyte.

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Spoken
Spoken - 8/24/2024, 10:33 AM
Exactly.
tylerzero
tylerzero - 8/24/2024, 5:23 PM
@Spoken -

Boy, Keanu dodged a bullet there, didn't he?

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GarthRanzz
GarthRanzz - 8/24/2024, 10:33 AM
I really liked this one. This and Andor are probably my 2 favorite Star Wars shows.
marvel72
marvel72 - 8/24/2024, 1:42 PM
@GarthRanzz -

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Andor though....

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TheNewYorker
TheNewYorker - 8/24/2024, 2:58 PM
@GarthRanzz - 🤣
Izaizaiza
Izaizaiza - 8/24/2024, 10:38 AM
Haven't finished the show yet, but at this point I give it a solid 3 or 3.5/5. Not great, but pretty good.

Still haven't checked out andor
dracula
dracula - 8/24/2024, 10:39 AM
Live action star wars is a mixed bag at best

At least the animation is consistently good (outside of resistance)
MrDandy
MrDandy - 8/24/2024, 10:42 AM
Andor was prestige television for Disney with it nominated for a lot of Emmy’s. And even through the viewership wasn’t great, it still had DOUBLE that of The Acolyte. It also cost less than half the Acolyte per episode.

With the cost of the acolyte between 180-200 million, that budget was catastrophic.
nerdrrrrage
nerdrrrrage - 8/24/2024, 2:00 PM
@MrDandy - Andor cost more than The Acolyte. But at least it looks expensive. Where did all the money go for The Acolyte, which looked cheap?

https://screenrant.com/star-wars-disney-plus-tv-show-costs-explained/
MrDandy
MrDandy - 8/24/2024, 2:04 PM
@nerdrrrrage - Andor cost more but has a 12 episode run compared to 8. And all the episodes had longer runtimes. Acolyte was significantly more expensive per episode.
mountainman
mountainman - 8/24/2024, 10:47 AM
The fan backlash and the declining viewership are not completely unrelated. But yeah if it was just some people online not liking it but it had good numbers, season 2 would have happened.

A lot of people chose not to watch. A good number who started the season didn’t finish. That isn’t how shows that get a second season perform.

Maybe they should make stuff more people want to watch.
soberchimera
soberchimera - 8/24/2024, 12:23 PM
@mountainman - The show was bad therefore people stopped watching it. Why are some folks trying to spin this as the cancellation had nothing to do with the show's quality?
DarthAlgar
DarthAlgar - 8/24/2024, 10:50 AM
Disney is too stubborn to not make the same mistake several more times.

They're all about low expectations now
dragon316
dragon316 - 8/24/2024, 11:03 AM
Obviously will there be any other reason for it be cancelled if it had enough views no
Thing94
Thing94 - 8/24/2024, 11:09 AM
It is crap that's why
Timerider
Timerider - 8/24/2024, 11:17 AM
So not only did it have Carrie-Anne Moss, it would have had Keanu Reeves as well. Jedi Trinity and Jedi Neo. Lawrence Fishburne would make a great Jedi too. Don’t think you are, know you are. Reminds me of Yoda.
MG0019
MG0019 - 8/24/2024, 11:18 AM
Are we surprised? The creators seemed to be of this modern mold; where they Hate what they’re creating. They balk at the very idea of IP, franchises, fanbases, all of the “genre” aspects of “genre.” And yet, they choose to play in it. They want to “subvert expectations” and “disassemble” the franchise. But that doesn’t mean it’s better, or even good.

If I order a chicken sandwich, and you bring me a strawberry pie, you certainly “subverted my expectations,” but I’m still hungry and I don’t want a desert, I wanted chicken. Now, bring me a steak, and I might be cool with that cuz I’m hungry and it still satisfies. But don’t píss on my back and call it rain.
DarthAlgar
DarthAlgar - 8/24/2024, 11:27 AM
@MG0019 - 🤔
nerdrrrrage
nerdrrrrage - 8/24/2024, 2:01 PM
@MG0019 - I wouldn't mind a good strawberry pie. But The Acolyte is more like a cowpie.
Purplechango
Purplechango - 8/24/2024, 11:25 AM
Because it sucked!
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 8/24/2024, 11:31 AM
Whether you enjoyed it or not, watching this series has been a waste of everyone’s time
Order66
Order66 - 8/24/2024, 11:31 AM
1. Mando
2. Ahsoka
3. Obi Wan
4. Andor
5. Boba Fett
6. Acolyte
McMurdo
McMurdo - 8/24/2024, 11:39 AM
@Order66 - unhinged
marvel72
marvel72 - 8/24/2024, 1:45 PM
@Order66 -

1.The Mandalorion (Season 1 and 2)
2.Andor
3.Book Of Boba Fett

Couldn't even finish the rest and I only watched episodes 3 and 5 of The Acolyte.
TheRogue
TheRogue - 8/24/2024, 2:13 PM
@marvel72 - Book of boba fett is the worst lmao.
Order66
Order66 - 8/24/2024, 4:42 PM
@marvel72 - too much talking in Andor. Not enough action. That’s why it’s 4 for me.
Order66
Order66 - 8/24/2024, 4:43 PM
@McMurdo - how so?
marvel72
marvel72 - 8/24/2024, 7:35 PM
@TheRogue - That's your opinion.
Personally it wasn't perfect but I didn't lose interest after the first episode and I could actually sit through to the end, which I couldn't do with Kenobi, Ahsoka and The Acolyte.

And it introduces a few characters that I liked.

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And some cool action scenes.

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OriginalGusto1
OriginalGusto1 - 8/25/2024, 10:10 PM
@Order66 - can I buy your weed?
Order66
Order66 - 8/26/2024, 9:18 AM
@OriginalGusto1 - what’s wrong with my ranking list? Mando is the standard, Ahsoka was fan service, Obi Wan had phenomenal fight scene between Vader and Obi, Andor too much talking, boba was lackluster, and acolyte sucked.
OriginalGusto1
OriginalGusto1 - 8/26/2024, 9:27 PM
@Order66 -

A. I'm drunk 24/7.
B. I'm [frick]ing stupid.
C. I love you and your list was the best.
Ha1frican
Ha1frican - 8/24/2024, 11:47 AM
I think the weekly release model is a big contributor to this. Sure you keep up “the conversation” and you can retain subs a little better but at the end of the day it makes it a lot harder to load peoples attention for 8 weeks at a time
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 8/24/2024, 11:54 AM
@Ha1frican - peoples attention spans unfortunately these days aren’t what they used to be , especially with TikTok’s and such.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 8/24/2024, 12:04 PM
@Ha1frican - I also how many people decided to wait and binge watch it all when it was over?.
nerdrrrrage
nerdrrrrage - 8/24/2024, 2:03 PM
@Ha1frican - I waited till all the episodes were up to start watching and watched it all the way through.

Verdict: terrible. The writing was the biggest pile of crap I've seen in a long time.

Regardless of how you watched it, the writing still sucked. There is no way to watch it that will make the writing not suck.
WakandanQueen
WakandanQueen - 8/24/2024, 11:51 AM
Well, pretty valid reason to cancel something.

Man, the return of this franchise to theaters is gonna be... something.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 8/24/2024, 11:57 AM
@WakandanQueen - gonna be really interesting to see how Mando & Grogu does because I feel like the hype if the show has kinda waned

If this was during the peak of S1 or 2 then I think it would be a more sure bet.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 8/24/2024, 11:58 AM
Maybe it’s cancellation was due to low viewership which I could see (though #RenewTheAcolyte on Twitter tells me otherwise I feel) however the show had generally positive critical reception..

The audience reception can be hard to gauge due to the trolls and bots influencing the percentage of various review aggregators but going by what I have been able to gather , the response there was more mixed-positive then anything else so if Lucasfilm cancelled the show because of that (which I don’t entirely buy) then it was a dumbass decision given they themselves are aware of review bombing & such.

Also just to clarify , Andor had already been given a 2 season run before the first even aired so viewership growth had nothing to do with that.

Anyway , it’s an unfortunate situation as someone who liked the show overall despite its flaws.
DarthOmega
DarthOmega - 8/24/2024, 11:59 AM
I think review bombing is real.
I think those YouTube reviewers go too far
I think the hate for the show is overstayed.

...

I also think the show was just bad.
I think it was poorly written
I think it was poorly acted
I think some of it was nonsensical

YouTubers didn't sway me. Negative, or positive review bombers didn't sway me (because yes, both exist) I watched the show, every episode. It was bland for a regular TV show. Absolutely abysmal for a Star Wars show.

But this is my opinion, not fact. If you liked the show... Great. Not my cup of tea, but maybe you don't like tea. You like coffee or lukewarm Mountain Dew. That's your thing. I will knock the show, I won't knock your opinion.

There are a ton of reasons why I believe this show failed and audiences didn't take to it. If you liked it, and you're willing to discuss it honestly instead of just throwing the "incel" word around like an idiot as to why some didn't like it... I'm here
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