There was a major disruption in the industry last night when Lucasfilm confirmed that it would not be continuing with its latest games star Wars series, The Acolyte. A series finale isn’t just a premature end to a particular show, however: a quick decision paints a grim picture star Warsin the future, at a time when the franchise continues to feel the uncertainty it has felt since its release Rise of Skywalker in 2019. So what do i The Acolyte news means for star Wars‘the future?
Light of the High Republic
Supreme Republic The transmedia initiative is one of Lucasfilm’s biggest projects in recent years, and although the book series and the comic series were always announced from the beginning as having a certain three-part structure, it’s hard not to feel The Acolyte-the first major leap into live-action continuity-dealing with an unfinished finale is a bit late for the project as it continues into its third, seemingly final, book phase.
Lucasfilm put a lot into it Supreme Republic just outside The Acolyte of course, including other shows, such as the 3DCG children’s series Young Jedi Adventures. But for almost as long as the show has been around, we’ve also known that we’ve been building it for this live show, a visual innovation all along. star Wars and their views on the great progress. There’s still a lot more to come from this season in terms of books and comics, but having it all up to the show that’s been abandoned feels like a blow to both audiences. Supreme Republic the series chose itself star Wars fandom, and the creators who lead the way in creating that world.
That is already clear The AcolyteThe story ‘s will find a future in the written word, if not on the screen. At San Diego Comic-Con last month, Lucasfilm’s press panel was almost entirely devoted to new comics and novels set to tie in time and characters The Acolyteand it wouldn’t be surprising to see future issues wrapping up some of the show’s ongoing ideas exist that way at some point.
Make Mine Mando…
Right now, it sounds like unless your project is being directly overseen in some way by Jon Favreau and Lucasfilm’s chief art officer Dave Filoni, it’s probably a bit behind. The so-called “Mandoverse” -the stories mentioned in the post-Return of the Jedi time of star Wars all spinning loosely on laid threads The Mandalorianfrom The Book of Boba Fettin Ahsokaof more upcoming movies—it’s about the only thing that feels certain on Lucasfilm’s slate right now.
Although announced at the same time at star Wars Last year’s celebration, there was very little movement in the studio’s plans for this post-Rise of Skywalker The new Jedi Order movie with Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and Daisy Ridley, or James Mangold’s “Dawn of the Jedi” project. And while we also haven’t heard anything definitive about the third film announced there—the one Filoni originally intended for in New Republic vs. Imperial Remnant film—us. be heard a lot about the producer’s plans to set the stage for the film that will eventually arrive, including next year. The Mandalorian and the Grogu (first star Wars movie from 2019) and the second season of Ahsoka (confirmed a few months after the climax of the first season).
Other films have had release dates that have changed since their announcements—or, in the case of Rey’s film, were sometimes just victims of the trauma of a nasty culture war—but. Mandalorian and Grogu it’s the only theatrical project that can give us tangible evidence of its ongoing existence right now, in the form of images shown to the audience at D23 earlier this month.
… But Is There Anything Else To Do?
The only direct series we know of at present is that which has been produced, i Lego Star Wars special Rebuild the Galaxywill be released next month; The Skeleton Crewcoming this December (itself a tie-in to the “Mandoverse,” as it’s executive produced by Favreau and Filoni and set in a nearly identical time period. The Mandalorian); and the second season of Andorwill be needed sometime in 2025. But after that? Both the TV and theater sides of the star Wars stay pretty nebulous with The Acolyte‘s to stop.
That alone continues the active pattern Lucasfilm has found itself in since its release Rise of Skywalker five years ago. A swath of star Wars projects announced at the time, only to find themselves abandoned, quietly dropped, or left in a sloppy holding pattern or reworked that never gets done. This includes Lando show (now a movie, too, that hasn’t really been talked about since its reboot), Rogue Squadronand a sea of projects from the likes of Shawn Levy, Taika Waititi, Kevin Feige, and more. Lucasfilm has confirmed and abandoned perhaps more projects in the last half decade than it has released. Hell, the studio never officially said they weren’t making three movies with Rian Johnson, which was announced right before the movie’s release. The Last Jedi it seems to have fundamentally changed the cultural conversation around it star Wars forever (more on that in a second)!
All this has created is a pattern of uncertainty almost everywhere star Wars announcement, whether it’s made through trade reports, Disney shareholder conferences, or glitzy fandom conventions. Why should you star Wars fans excited announcements will almost certainly fade into the ether? Why invest in a series that can be canceled immediately after its first season? Especially if it’s not directly connected to the immediate momentum of the franchise’s current renovation The Mandalorian?
For the Love of God, Protect Them The Skeleton Crew Children
For all the disagreements the studio has had with its release schedule, there is one area in particular that Lucasfilm has continued to be particularly bad at: its inability to speak up and protect its creative talent from bad faith attacks and harassment. Since then The Last Jedi created a momentary “culture war,” or whatever star Wars the project that makes the desire to ask in the series or different fields the talent has faced waves of attacks with bad faith about the so-called “resurrection agenda.”
While the studio is making at least some strides in combating this onslaught—especially when it comes to public meetings. Obi-Wan Kenobi Actress Moses Ingram—Lucasfilm in general has had a history of leaving talent unsupported after online harassment, with stars like Kelly Marie Tran and John Boyega speaking openly about their struggles. star Wars fans and the abuse they received, or more recently with Lucasfilm’s silence after the planned director of the film The New Jedi Order, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, was the target of a smear campaign by right-wing activists earlier this year over unrelated comments about her filmmaking. made in 2015.
Forward The AcolyteLucasfilm’s release, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy has done a lot to support the series in case it faces similar campaigns, considering its diverse cast and their rare status. star Wars a female-driven series. “Working in these big franchises now, with the social media and the level of expectation—it’s scary,” Kennedy said in a May New York Times profile. “I think it’s Leslye [Headland, The Acolyte’s showrunner] struggled a bit with it. I think many women don’t have it star Wars try this for a bit. Because their followers are predominantly male, they are sometimes attacked in non-personal ways.” And yet, Lucasfilm went silent again when the series and its creators, especially Headland and the main star Amandla Stenberg, suffered from many waves of abuse aimed at “breaking” the game. star Wars continuing to include the prequel trilogy Jedi Ki-Adi-Mundi with a brief appearance, or that the show’s approach to the Force did not conform to certain preconceived ideas. The fact that the end of the show has sparked a wave of celebration in certain circles online (including Elon Musk, of all people) about how the series’ exemplary “go whole, go broke” talk about how unprepared Lucasfilm remains comes to speaking star Wars‘ a dynamic presence in the ongoing culture war.
It makes for a very difficult time when the next live-action series, The Skeleton Crewis a show starring a group of young children. You’ve already done something unconventional in the franchise—an adventure series with child actors in the vein of similar films The Goonies –if The Skeleton Crew does anything that seems different from the franchise, the attack on its stars will be as inevitable as it was 25 years ago when The Phantom Menace Child actor Jake Lloyd was honored for his portrayal of Anakin Skywalker. No matter how The Skeleton Crew accepted, Lucasfilm cannot afford to leave its talent unsupported as has been the case in the past.
It’s Always Moving, The Future Is Here
Making movies and TV is tough, especially in the tumultuous times studios find themselves in right now—even a studio backed by a fully-armed and active Disney firefighter, as Lucasfilm is. Plans will change and change all the time, series won’t work well and come to an end, things will be announced, scrapped, or pushed back all the time. star Wars there is certainly no exception to this rule, as it has not been the case in recent years Rise of Skywalker. There is no doubt that as Lucasfilm returns to the convention circuit next year as well star Wars Celebration of Japan, we will be able to hear more about that tomorrow, both sooner and more. And again, there is the same doubt that much of that future will remain volatile.
But the quick decision is over The Acolyte puts the franchise at a rough crossroads going forward: the future there star Wars it tries even with fear in the face of cultural trauma and finds a place for itself outside of the stories of the main movies, or a future where it puts all its focus on calling the one vein that has been worked since the end of the Skywalker Saga. it prioritizes the normal over anything else.
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