The Acolyte cancelled after one season – Lucasfilm not going ahead with season 2
Fans may never find out what was planned for Mae, Osha and the Stranger.
Star Wars prequel series The Acolyte has been cancelled after one season, Lucasfilm has confirmed.
The recent release takes place approximately 100 years prior to the events of The Phantom Menace, in an era defined by the studio as The High Republic, when the Jedi Order was at its strongest.
The story followed two sisters, Osha and Mae (both played by Amandla Stenberg), as a conspiracy surrounding them was gradually revealed, connecting several members of the Order with a dark, shared secret.
The Acolyte proved divisive among the Star Wars fandom, with some of its detractors suspected of having "review-bombed" the show on sites such as Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb, where its user rating sits at 18 percent and 4.1/10 respectively.
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Although there was certainly legitimate criticism about its pacing and script issues, it should be acknowledged that some of the online discourse targeted the show's racial diversity and inclusion of LGBTQ+ themes.
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Indeed, prior to the show's release, lead actor Stenberg said she had been "flooded" with "intolerable" racist abuse on social media, which grimly echoes the experience of past Star Wars actors including Kelly Marie Tran, Moses Ingram and John Boyega.
The volatility of the online discourse appears to have been a factor in The Acolyte's cancellation, with an industry source telling The Hollywood Reporter that it "hurt the public perception of the show".
However, the show had also proved underwhelming in terms of viewership, rarely appearing in the top 10 original streaming shows compiled by US ratings firm Nielsen each week during the course of its run.
It's unclear at this stage whether the story of The Acolyte, which was left with many unresolved threads, could be expanded on in the form of a comic book, novel or other expanded universe project, but some fans will be calling for more.
In addition to Stenberg, the show also starred Manny Jacinto (The Good Place), Lee Jung-jae (Squid Game), Carrie Anne-Moss (The Matrix) and Rebecca Henderson (Russian Doll).
The Acolyte is available to stream on Disney Plus. Sign up to Disney Plus from £4.99 a month.
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