The Acolyte star Manny Jacinto has revealed three seasons of the Star Wars show were planned prior to its cancellation. The actor appeared during a Fan Expo panel hosted by Collider, where the topic of his time in the galaxy far, far away was brought up. When discussing The Acolyte — which was cancelled after a single season — Jacinto shed some light on showrunner Leslye Headland’s vision for the series, outlining what she had in mind when The Acolyte started.
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“I remember Leslye’s dream was for us to do three seasons, not just this one … But there’s something about having a finite ending to things that makes it so much more special,” Jacinto said. “So, yeah, I don’t know if I’d do it or not, but you know, three seasons and a movie would have been incredible, and I know we had so much more to explore with that second season.”
Debuting over the summer, The Acolyte marked the Star Wars franchise’s first on-screen depiction of the High Republic era, telling a story set roughly 100 years before The Phantom Menace. While the show earned positive reviews from critics, it quickly became one of the most divisive Star Wars projects in the Disney era, and it was officially cancelled back in August. Recently, Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman shed light on why that decision was made, stating The Acolyte was too expensive to greenlight a second season. The show’s only season had a budget of over $230 million for eight episodes.
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Prior to The Acolyte‘s cancellation, Headland expressed hope for additional seasons. In particular, the showrunner was interested in featuring more of Darth Plagueis, following the Sith Lord’s surprise cameo in the finale. According to Jacinto, Plagueis was “definitely” part of the plan if Season 2 had gotten the go-ahead. Plagueis was just one of several lingering Acolyte plot threads that will seemingly go unresolved now; the finale also boasts an appearance from Yoda — something Headland fought for during development.
Considering how the Acolyte finale transpired, it isn’t surprising the creative team envisioned a blueprint of multiple seasons, and it’s frustrating Headland & Co. won’t be able to see that plan come to fruition. In addition to following up on the Plagueis and Yoda cameos, it would have been exciting to see more of Jacinto’s Qimir, aka the Stranger, who quickly managed to become a fan-favorite character thanks to the actor’s compelling performance. As Jacinto has alluded to, Season 1 only scratched the surface; Qimir stood to become even more interesting with additional development, especially since the finale ends with him united with Osha on the dark side. That dynamic would have been fascinating to watch unfold with Plagueis entering the picture.
It’s also a shame that the first on-screen foray into the High Republic era was cut so short. Many of the Star Wars movies and TV shows are condensed into a brief period of time on the franchise timeline and primarily stem from the original trilogy. While the Plagueis and Yoda cameos served as some connective tissue to the Skywalker saga, The Acolyte largely stood on its own with a narrative far removed from what had come before. As Lucasfilm struggles to figure out the next slate of Star Wars movies, the High Republic could have been a realm to further explore different stories, expanding the property’s rich lore. Acolyte characters will appear in published materials, but it remains to be seen if Lucasfilm rolls the dice on another High Republic on-screen project.
