The Acolyte
Disney is finally taking another somewhat large risk with Star Wars at last, not adapting straight up EU material or branching off other films or shows, but doing something wholly original. That would be The Acolyte, which centers on a killer stalking and murdering Jedi. We’ve seen a trailer, but now a group of early viewers have seen anywhere from 2-4 episodes of the show ahead of its June 4 debut in just under two weeks.
The takes, just on social media and not officially scored reviews yet, are endlessly positive. That said, we are talking about many people who attended an actual premiere event for The Acolyte with the cast and other Star Wars shows. So sure that may…lean a little more positive than the average crowd. But if you want to know what they’re saying, here’s a collection of comments:
- Star Wars Holocron – “THE ACOLYTE Eps 1-4 are superb. A captivating murder mystery that evokes the detective tales of Twin Peaks & Matt Reeves’ The Batman. Mature like Andor while fully embracing & thematically connecting to the prequels. Seeing the High Republic in live-action does not disappoint.”
- Nancy Wang Yeun – “#TheAcolyte 2-episode premiere was so much fun. Lee Jung-jae’s performance was so good and Manny Jacinto was hilarious. I also liked Amandla Stenberg as the lead. Despite borrowing a costume, I am not a Star Wars fan—but you don’t need to be one yourself enjoy this series!”
- Erik Voss – “The Acolyte presents something we rarely see in Star Wars: a good mystery. Not just “who is the Glup Shitto,” but truly a Fugitive-style conspiracy thriller.”
The Acolyte
- Germain Lussier – “Beholden to nothing except being “Star Wars,” #TheAcolyte soars. It’s an interesting, fun, character driven mystery with real stakes that you care about bolstered by all the fixings that make it Star Wars. Saw the first two episodes and LOVED THEM.”
- Sean O’Connell – “Really digging #TheAcolyte through four episodes. Fresh storytelling in an unexplored era of STAR WARS. But it’s all about character, and Amandla Stenberg continues to impress as a former Padawan pulled into a murder mystery. GREAT fight choreography, cool new worlds. Big win!”
- Jorgie Rodriguez – “#TheAcolyte is the force-sensitive version of Andor. The cast is stellar, the writing of each episode is jam packed. Practical sets and amazing costumes, as well as sfx work make every location feel lived in, while having an emotional throughline to keep it focused.”
I could go on as there are dozens of these, but you get the idea. Again, we don’t know precisely what the stipulations were for early access and being allowed to post comments on social media, but it’s at the very least promising, even if it doesn’t actually live up to being “Jedi Andor” which I think would be exceedingly hard. But knowing that it’s a solid entry being its own thing from a whole new non-Skywalker era we have only seen in books so far, that sounds really good, and I’m looking forward to it even more now.
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