The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland discusses the influence director Rian Johnson's Star Wars: The Last Jedi had on the upcoming series.

While speaking with Collider, Headland explained that The Acolyte, which is set to follow a former Padawan/Jedi Master pair and a group of Sith working in the shadows, will place a critical eye on the Jedi. "I think it's difficult to do a show that is critical in any way of the Jedi. And I think that you saw that with [Rian Johnson's] film," Headland said. "Do you know what I mean? Like, I think that, especially in that moment, people were very nervous about saying this particular institution may not be the light and perfect, stunning group of heroes that are totally nobly intentioned... That's really the story that George [Lucas] told with the prequels, right? The fall of this particular group."

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Headland also recalled her experience pitching The Acolyte to Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, explaining that the Disney+ series would place the Jedi as the antagonists. "I think when you think you're going to tell the story about bad guys, and the Jedis might be the antagonist to those Jedis, I think that makes people nervous," she said. "But it didn't make Kathy nervous."

The Acolyte Will Draw in New Star Wars Fans

Kennedy previously said that The Acolyte, as well as other new shows Ahsoka and Skeleton Crew, was designed to attract new Star Wars fans to the franchise. Headland has also discussed her initial pitch for The Acolyte, describing the show as "Frozen meets Kill Bill." Kennedy responded to that pitch by saying she was "blown away by what I was seeing and every bit of love that [Headland] has for Star Wars is on the screen."

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Logan star Dafne Keen, who will star in The Acolyte, confirmed that the series is set a century before the prequel trilogy, and offers an "explanation of how the Sith infiltrated the Jedi." She added, "It's a Sith-led story, which has never been done before." Keen praised her time working on the series, stating, "It's been really fun to film -- the cast is amazing, and the director and crew are just lovely. The whole experience is wonderful, and I'm already excited for people to see it."

Star Wars: The Last Jedi was the second installment in Lucasfilms' sequel trilogy and the follow-up to JJ Abrams's The Force Awakens. Though The Last Jedi received positive reviews from critics at the time of its release, it has proved polarizing among Star Wars fans, with Johnson even clashing with star Mark Hamill, who has portrayed Luke Skywalker since 1977's A New Hope, over the direction of the film. In a September 2022 interview, Johnson described the "painful" backlash he received from Star Wars fans over The Last Jedi, saying, "It’s been a process. At the beginning, it was not easy. It was incredibly painful."

Star Wars: The Last Jedi is available to stream on Disney+. The Acolyte is set to premiere on Disney+ in 2024.

Source: Collider