Series / The Acolyte

The Acolyte is a 2024 Space Opera/mystery series set in the Star Wars canon. It was developed by Leslye Headland and stars Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae as Master Sol, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Charlie Barnett, Dean-Charles Chapman, Margarita Levieva, Joonas Suotamo, and Carrie-Anne Moss.

The series is set a century before the events of The Phantom Menace, at the end of the High Republic era. In this time of great peace and prosperity, a Jedi Master and his former Padawan reunite to investigate a mysterious crime spree, unearthing dark secrets about their society in the process.

The series will premiere on Disney+ with its first two episodes on June 4, 2024.

Previews: Teaser, Official Trailer

The Acolyte includes examples of the following:

• Advertising by Association: The main trailer boasts “From the studio that brought you The Mandalorian, Andor, and Ahsoka”.
• Bar Brawl: In the teaser, a female Jedi does battle against a masked assailant in a bar.
• Call-Forward:
  • The teaser sees one of the Younglings mention being able to sense life and balance through the Force while meditating. The instructor also makes a point of teaching his students that their eyes can deceive them.
  • The unnamed Sith Lord from promotional materials wears a helmet that is evocative of those later worn by the Knights of Ren.
• Double Meaning: The May 4th trailer features some off-screen character saying that the Jedi justify their conquest with peace, but "that peace is a lie." "Peace is a lie!" is the opening line of the Sith Code, indicating that the speaker is probably associated with them, if not one himself.
• Faux Fluency: Korean actor Lee Jung-jae knew very little English prior to filming the series.
• Kung-Fu Wizard: Quite literally, according to one teaser. Both the titular acolyte Mae and Lee Jung-jae's character Sol fight in a highly martial weaponless duel, with high kicks, strikes, and parries.
• Martial Pacifist: Demonstrated during a battle with Mae, where Sol cleanly blocks and counters or dodges every strike thrown his way without escalating the situation, except by stealing Mae's daggers.
• Punch Catch: In the teaser and in a clip released on May 22nd, Sol is able to catch a kick from Mae.
• Psychic Children: The teaser opens on Jedi Younglings being taught to see visions of the Force. One child mentions seeing fire, foreshadowing the coming conflict of Jedi being murdered via the Clone Wars.