Lucasfilm’s new live-action series, Star Wars: The Acolyte, is set to introduce a whole new audience to The High Republic era. In 2020, Lucasfilm announced a new multimedia campaign focused on a new era of Star Wars designed to take place hundreds of years before the events of the films. First introduced through a series of books written by an All-Star roster of authors, The High Republic allowed stories to be told free from most established canon entanglements.
James Waugh, who is currently the Senior Vice President, Franchise Content and Strategy at Lucasfilm, said in the original announcement that “[t]his was a golden age for the Jedi, and also a time of galactic expansion in the Outer Rim. So expect there to be rich tales of exploration; charting out the galaxy, meeting new cultures, and discovering what pioneer life in the Outer Rim was like. This is an incredible sandbox for our storytellers to play in, both within publishing and beyond, and we can’t wait to see the great fiction they build within it.”
In the last half decade since the announcement, The High Republic era has received strong praise from Star Wars fans, who are not the easiest group to please. Now, with the upcoming Disney+ series, The Acolyte, The High Republic era is about to reach new…heights.
Today, Lucasfilm revealed the first trailer for The Acolyte, starring Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Charlie Barnett, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Dean-Charles Chapman, Joonas Suotamo, and Carrie-Anne Moss.
It started with a quick but memorable teaser image shared yesterday on the official Star Wars social media accounts. The teaser, which featured a bloody lightsaber dragged along the ground, sent a loud and clear message that The Acolyte would have a more mature tone.
Today, Lucasfilm revealed the first trailer for the the highly anticipated new series, which featured an expectedly darker tone, a mysterious and menacing figure, and numerous lightsaber wielding Jedi. While the prospects of a darker story are intriguing, what is likely to get most casual fans excited is seeing numerous Jedi at the height of their powers.
The Acolyte is also one of, if not the, most diverse Star Wars projects we’ve ever seen. Led by Stenberg and Lee, the cast and creatives are full of diverse talent.
Leslye Headland created the series, and also directed the premiere episodes (Eps. 101 & 102). Additional directors for the series include Kogonada (Eps. 103 & 107), Alex Garcia Lopez (Eps. 104 & 105) and Hanelle Culpepper (Eps. 106 & 108).
Watch the trailer and check out the incredible batch of first look images released.
The first two episodes of Star Wars: The Acolyte premiere June 4 on Disney+.
About The Acolyte:
In “Star Wars: The Acolyte,” an investigation into a shocking crime spree pits a respected Jedi Master (Lee Jung-jae) against a dangerous warrior from his past (Amandla Stenberg). As more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all is not what it seems….
The series stars Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Charlie Barnett, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Dean-Charles Chapman, Joonas Suotamo, and Carrie-Anne Moss.
Leslye Headland created the series, based on Star Wars by George Lucas, and serves as an executive producer along with Kathleen Kennedy, Simon Emanuel, Jeff F. King and Jason Micallef. Charmaine DeGraté and Kor Adana are the co-executive producers. Rayne Roberts, Damian Anderson, Eileen Shim and Rob Bredow are the producers.
Headland also directed the premiere episodes (Eps. 101 & 102). Directors Kogonada (Eps. 103 & 107), Alex Garcia Lopez (Eps. 104 & 105) and Hanelle Culpepper (Eps. 106 & 108) round out the directing duties on the series.
Award-winning composer Michael Abels, known for his work on “Get Out” and “Us,” scored “Star Wars: The Acolyte.”
Ron is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of POC Culture. He is a big believer in the power and impact of pop culture and the importance of representation in media.
