Think you know everything there is to know about Star Wars? Even the most ardent fan of the intricate universe will enjoy the new life that has been breathed into the franchise with The Acolyte, which is streaming exclusively on Disney+ from today.
A prequel series that is set in the era of the High Republic - a largely peaceful golden age of history in the Star Wars timeline which has been likened to the Renaissance - 100 years before the events of The Phantom Menace, The Acolyte introduces new characters and a storyline amid familiar landscapes and references that will sate loyal fans. The Star Wars Extended Universe (EU) is an expansive and detailed tapestry so deeply embedded in pop culture that the uninitiated can be scared off; however, The Acolyte requires no background knowledge of the expansive backstory of the Skywalkers et al. In other words, if you don’t know your C3P0 from your R2D2, or your Darth Vader from your Darth Maul, don’t worry.
Instead, Lucasfilm have crafted an exciting new murder mystery/thriller series that takes multiple twists and turns across eight episodes. We meet Osha and Mae, twins (both played by Amandla Stenberg) who were separated as children by a tragedy on Brendok, the planet where they were raised by a secretive coven of witches.
Sixteen years later, between the city-planet of Coruscant and the jungle-covered Khofar, a ruthless assassin is hunting and murdering Jedi, with four specific names on their hit list. The assassin, it seems, is working only for a shadowy figure known only as The Master. What is their agenda, and how is it linked to Osha and Mae’s childhood? Across eight thrilling episodes, The Acolyte explores themes of revenge, family, loyalty, power and free will, repeatedly positing the question: is blood really thicker than water?
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Bearing the success of recent spin-off series The Mandalorian and Andor in mind, The Acolyte needed to offer something new to draw viewers in. Here, under the eye of Russian Doll creator Leslye Headland, that entails creating the first truly female-centred story in the franchise. Stenberg’s Osha and Mae leads a cast that also includes an excellent Jodie Turner-Smith as Mother Aniseya, the leader of the aforementioned mysterious coven of The Force (or The Thread, as they refer to it.) Matrix star Carrie-Ann Moss has the opportunity to show off her action chops once again, playing Jedi Master Indara with an ice-cool presence, while Dafne Keen, previously seen leading the charge in fantasy adaptation His Dark Materials, is young alien-hybrid padawan Jecki Lon.
Joining them is a face that will be familiar to fans of Squid Game, as South Korean actor Lee Jung-jae swaps dystopian reality TV for those iconic Jedi robes, lightsabers, and The Force. He plays Master Sol: the Jedi who took a young Osha under his wing as a padawan, before she ultimately strayed from the path she embarked upon as a child. When they are thrown back together to unmask the identity of the mysterious Master and their titular acolyte, and stop their murderous rampage before it’s too late, they uncover more than they bargained for.
The galaxy is not a place that welcomes women like us; witches that have the abilities that we do
Crucially, Headland ensures that female characters in The Acolyte are not sidelined at the expense of the story. In one telling scene where a young Osha is being counselled by her mother, she is told with a knowing look: “The galaxy is not a place that welcomes women like us; witches that have the abilities that we do.” Stenberg, meanwhile, is no stranger to huge franchises having been introduced to audiences as a teenager in The Hunger Games. Here, she plays both Osha and Mae - dual characters that represent yin and yang, or the light and dark side of The Force - with both a steely sense of ambition and a vulnerability; young women who have been damaged by their past yet seek to atone for it in their own ways. Which approach is the right one? Stenberg aptly summarised Headland’s approach as “intellectually really complex, but then emotionally so simple”, but also deserves praise for her portrayal of two characters with much in common, yet very different mindsets.
If you’re worrying that it all sounds heavy on drama and relationships, fear not. This is a Star Wars story, after all, and the action sequences are fittingly electrifying; Headland reportedly pitched the story to Lucasfilm as “Frozen meets Kill Bill”. Within a few minutes of the first episode, viewers are treated to an electrifying hand-to-hand combat scene, and yes - there are lightsabers aplenty, although viewers are teased across several episodes with brief flashes of neon. When the iconic weapons are eventually drawn with real purpose a few episodes in, it is a suitably spectacular payoff. So too are the extravagant sets and scenery, shot between the Portuguese island of Madeira and Wales; true, it’s no Skellig Michael or Dingle Peninsula, but it’ll do.
Above all else, The Acolyte takes an exciting new approach to a franchise that has entertained viewers for decades - and will perhaps even draw in a new generation of fans with a gripping storyline, action-packed set pieces and characters that still have the ability to raise goosebumps - who could possibly deny the visual appeal of a Wookiee? Osha’s adorable android Pip, meanwhile, will surely replace Baby Yoda as the most-requested gift under the Christmas tree this year.
The Acolyte is perhaps best summarised by a telling quote by Jodie Turner-Smith’s Mother Aniseya early on in the series. “This isn’t about good or bad,” she tells Osha. “This is about power, and who is allowed to use it.” It is a line that could summarise the crux of every Star Wars story ever told - but this time, with new characters and an exhilarating storyline to reinvigorate the concept, it seems especially potent.
Star Wars The Acolyte is available to stream exclusively on Disney+ from today, June 5th.