According to Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm, Leslye Headland (writer and showrunner of The Acolyte) is a big fan of Star Wars and will include in the series fragments of the Expanded Universe that no one has yet explored on screen.
The franchise of starwars continues to grow in all its formats: comics, games, series, movies. However, with Obi-Wan Kenobi days before opening Disney+fans of this huge universe are aware of all the content that may come from that side, more than anything with the return of the Jedi master and Darth Vader to the screen. Now, another series that is in formation is The Acolytewhich will be set in the era of High Republic.
Although there is no release date or cast, since it is still in the pre-production phase, little by little we are finding out more information about The Acolyte. This series takes place about 100 years before the events of The Phantom Menace and, as we said above, it will be set in the era known as the high republican age of wealth and innovation for the galaxy, where the dark side of the Force was seemingly erased from existence.
The Acolyte will enhance an aspect of starwars that, although it was seen a lot in the books, it never made it to the screen, something that excites and excites several. Another thing that can excite and give confidence to the followers of this world is that the writer and showrunner of the series, Leslie Headland, be a big fan of the franchise. According to Vanity Fair, the president of lucasfilm, kathleen kennedysaid: “the wonder of Leslie is that he knows everything. I mean, he has read billions of books within the EU (Expanded Universe). There are little bits that he’s distilling from that no one has explored yet in on-screen storytelling.”
For those who don’t know, the Star Wars Expanded Universe, now known as Star Wars Legendsencompasses every one of the officially licensed stories from this fictional universe, apart from the six original films produced by george lucas and other products. This material is derived from and includes most novels, comics, video games, supplemental movies, toys, series, and other media related to Star Wars. So maybe the followers of these stories can be surprised with characters and details that we will see in The Acolyte.
Headland he had told Vanity Fair that it was “a female fan who was much more interested in RPGs (role playing games) on which the Extended Universe feeds” and that he knew the timeline very well. I think if you want to explore starwars from the bad guys perspective, the best time to do it is when the bad guys are outnumbered. When in reality they are essentially the underdogs, for lack of a better term. so this (The Acolyte) it would be that era”said the showrunner of the series.
Let’s remember that Headland had explained that his series will take place in the high republic and that will answer us how the dark side of the Force was conspiring and taking power in the shadows and what were the scenarios that led to a sith lord infiltrate the Senate without any of the Jedi noticing.
As for the title of the series, the showrunner hints that he is targeting a member of the dark side of the Force. “Acolyte” is commonly used to refer to a follower, especially a deeply devoted one. A true believer. But its main definition is related to someone who helps a religious leader in conducting a mass, for example. This leads us to think that The Acolyte it could center around a Sith master and apprentice.
Although the details of the cast are a mystery, many rumors suggest that Amandla Stenberg (The Darkest Minds, The Hate U Give, Rue in The Hunger Games) could be the main candidate to star in the series.