‘The Acolyte’: Leslye Headland Explains the Detective Angle in the New ‘Star Wars’ Series and the Meaning of the Title of the Show
When the trailer for The Acolyte dropped online two weeks ago, it was met with a wave of skepticism by the online fandom primarily due to the presence of a red lightsaber at the end, and the tease of a fight between multiple Jedi and a red lightsaber-wielding entity. If the entity is a Sith, then that would seemingly contradict (the Internet argued) the Ki-Adi-Mundi line from The Phantom Menace in which the Jedi said that the Sith had been extinct for a millennium.
Whether or not that’s the case, Leslye Headland didn’t reveal any Sith-related details to Empire Magazine in an excerpt from the massive coverage that will be featured in the new issue, coming out next week. She’s probably waiting for everyone to see the context of her story when the show releases in June in order to properly respond to that looming question. She did say, however, that this is essentially a story about the ticking clock on the Jedi Order and how it got to zero during the prequels. She said:
“I was very interested in, how did the Jedi get to where they are in Phantom Menace? You’re definitely getting a sense that, with the Jedi, the writing may be on the wall.”
From the outside, it looks like quite the challenge. Headland has said over and over again that the focus will be on the villains with Amandla Stenberg’s evil Mae being the indisputable main character of the show, and yet, there is a vast array of Jedi characters and plenty of storylines set up for them.
We’ll meet Lee Jung-jae’s Master Sol, described by Headland as “massively respected and incredibly powerful.” He has one Padawan during the main story of the series, Dafne Keen’s Jecki Lon, who “wants to be perfect for him,” said the actress. We will meet our first live-action Wookiee Jedi in Joonas Suotamo’s Master Kelnacca, which was “another Star Wars dream come true” for him, after playing Chewbacca in Solo and the last two sequel films. There’s also Jedi Knight Yord Fandar, who Charlie Barnett describes as “…kind of a jerk! He’s a little bit of a goody two-shoes.”
It’s pretty clear by now that this will be an ensemble show with a lot of focus on character stories. Headland said as much:
“The quote-unquote ‘war’ of this Star Wars is a much smaller, more personal one. The war between people, the war between characters.”
But that is not all. Headland, as the lead writer along with her team, constructed this narrative from the very beginning as a mystery thriller, a detective story that will keep the audience guessing. She elaborated:
“It’s one story with several reveals, and new clues and new information each episode. It’s not just a mystery that you have to find out. It’s not unlike Russian Doll. It’s almost like a spiral — it digs deeper and deeper and deeper.
It’s going to get even more intriguing and gripping, because of that detective genre. It’s going to keep you on the edge of your toes, wanting to guess.”
The mystery aspect of the show goes as far as the title, even. Who is “The Acolyte”? Headland addressed the question:
“It’s a position, essentially, that someone is going to fulfil, or step into. We know with the Sith that there is a Master, we know that there is an Apprentice. But in deep EU [Expanded Universe], there’s a concept of an Acolyte, which is underneath Apprentice. So that is where I got the title from.”
It would seem as if Amandla Stenberg’s Mae is exactly that character, but the actress is not giving it away yet. They said:
“It’s a lot more complicated than that. Which is the point of the show. Hopefully, if we did our job right, the show makes it an interesting interrogation into what it means to be on the light side or the dark side.”
All will be revealed in time. The series starts streaming on Disney Plus on June 4, at 6pm PT / 9pm ET / June 5, at 2am BST. The first two episodes will be available that day, with the rest coming out on a weekly basis thereafter.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as movies from Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
