Disney+'s upcoming live-action Star Wars series The Acolyte has officially found its lead in The Hunger Games alum Amandla Stenberg.On Instagram, Stenberg shared a photo of herself rocking a Darth Maul t-shirt and hanging out with R2-D2. "Next stop: a galaxy far, far away," she wrote. "I am so excited to finally announce I'm joining [Star Wars: The Acolyte]! Honored is an understatement. May the Force be with you." The official Star Wars Twitter account reposted Stenberg's photo, writing, "Join us in welcoming Amandla Stenberg to the the [sic] Star Wars galaxy. #TheAcolyte." Stenberg's involvement in The Acolyte was initially reported by The Illuminerdi in December 2021, though her casting had been unconfirmed until now.
Stenberg is perhaps best known for her role as Rue in The Hunger Games, the 2012 film based on Suzanne Collins' 2008 novel of the same name. Stenberg has also starred in such films as The Hate U Give (2018), Where Hands Touch (2018) and Dear Evan Hansen (2021). As far as the small screen is concerned, she recently starred in Netflix's 2020 musical drama miniseries The Eddy.
The Acolyte Will Bring Star Wars' High Republic Era to Live-Action
Announced in December 2020 during The Walt Disney Company's Investor Day, The Acolyte is described as a "mystery-thriller that will take the audience into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark side powers." The series is set during the waning days of the High Republic era, though still a good while before the events of the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. The High Republic began as a publishing initiative in 2020, spanning various novels and comic books. In addition to The Acolyte, this period in Star Wars canon will serve as the setting of the upcoming video game Star Wars Eclipse.
At Disney Investor Day 2020, Lucasfilm announced that Leslye Headland, creator of Netflix's Russian Doll, would serve as showrunner on The Acolyte. Later that same month, it came to light that Lucasfilm executive Rayne Roberts -- who has previously worked on various Star Wars films and television shows -- was co-developing the series with Headland. It was recently reported that Loki's Kate Herron had been tapped to direct The Acolyte, though this remains unconfirmed at the time of writing.
The Acolyte will premiere on Disney+, though does not currently have a release date.