An absurd amount of The Acolyte, an action-packed High Republic-era series created by Leslye Headland.
With so many new projects to choose from, fans are more excited for Ahsoka Tano and Boba Fett’s series than stories about lesser-known characters like Cassian Andor or completely unknown characters like the original cast of The Acolyte. But, there are plenty of reasons to look forward to those shows, too.
Andor: It’s A Spy Show About The Rebel Alliance
As a spy for the Rebel Alliance, Cassian Andor has the chance to become the Star Wars universe’s very own James Bond in his spin-off series. While the original trilogy explored the Rebels’ explosive victories over the Empire, Andor can show the dirty work that made those victories possible.
There are plenty of fun espionage scenarios that Andor can explore with a Star Wars twist like interrogating suspects and going undercover with the bad guys.
The Acolyte: The High Republic Has Barely Been Explored
Taking place around 100 years before the destruction of the Death Star, The Acolyte will step away from the events of the Skywalker saga finally and explore a very different era in the Star Wars timeline: the High Republic. Lucasfilm recently announced a literary Star Wars sub-franchise focused on the High Republic era, but The Acolyte will explore this era on-screen.
Andor: Diego Luna Can Finally Get The Material He Deserves
Not a lot of Star Wars fans are particularly excited about Cassian Andor getting his own series, as Rogue One didn’t give them much of a reason to care about him. He was really underwritten, and his character arc was shaped to fit the story, not the other way around.
But, when he did shine in Rogue One, like when he says he’s been in this fight since he was six years old, it was thanks to Diego Luna’s performance. He’s a great actor, and, in the Andor series, he can finally get the nuanced material his talent deserves.
The Acolyte: It’s About The Dark Side
Stories about the Force in the Star Wars universe are almost always told from the perspective of the light side, but The Acolyte will explore how the emergence of dark side powers in the High Republic eventually led to the Sith’s return a few decades later.
While the tone of Star Wars stories should generally be fun and pulpy, creators have done some terrific work in darker territory over the years, like the video games The Force Unleashed and Knights of the Old Republic. The Acolyte could fall into that category.
Andor: K-2SO Is Back
In addition to Diego Luna reprising his role as Cassian Andor, Andor will bring back his sidekick, reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2SO, who quickly became a fan-favorite character following his introduction in Rogue One.
Alan Tudyk will return to provide the character’s voice, hopefully bringing all the wry charm that made him so instantly lovable in Rogue One.
The Acolyte: Leslye Headland Is A Great Writer
Leslye Headland has been confirmed as the creator, writer, and executive producer of The Acolyte. Seemingly, Headland’s role on The Acolyte will be similar to Jon Favreau’s role overseeing The Mandalorian, and if that’s the case, the show is in safe hands.
Headland is a great storyteller, as proven by Netflix’s Russian Doll and the underrated gem Bachelorette, which she adapted from her own play.
Andor: Rick Famuyiwa Is Directing A Couple Of Episodes
While the involvement of Tony Gilroy, the writer responsible for Rogue One’s controversial rewrites, could be seen as an ominous sign for Andor, the involvement of Rick Famuyiwa as a director is a decidedly promising one.
Famuyiwa was confirmed to be in talks to direct a few episodes of Andor after working on The Mandalorian. In addition to a number of brilliant feature directorial efforts such as Dope, Famuyiwa has helmed some of the best episodes of The Mandalorian, including “The Child,” “The Prisoner,” and “The Believer.” He also worked as a writer on the latter two episodes.
The Acolyte: It’s Female-Driven
Almost all Star Wars stories have revolved around male protagonists, and, when there is a female protagonist, they’re usually poorly developed, like Rey or Jyn Erso—Princess Leia being a notable exception. There are plenty of strong female characters in the Star Wars universe, from Leia Organa to Ahsoka Tano, but not many female-driven stories.
While no specific characters or storylines have been confirmed, it has been confirmed that The Acolyte will be a female-centric project. In fact, before the title was revealed at Disney’s Investor Day, “female-centric” was all that was known about it, so it must be a pretty important aspect.
Andor: The Americans’ Stephen Schiff Is The Showrunner
In the spirit of Andor being a spy series set in the Star Wars universe, Lucasfilm has hired a showrunner who worked on one of the greatest espionage-themed shows ever made. Stephen Schiff, who will oversee Andor in the same way Leslye Headland is overseeing The Acolyte, previously worked as an executive producer on FX’s critically acclaimed The Americans.
The Acolyte: It’s A Martial Arts Action Thriller
Before any of the specifics of The Acolyte were announced, Deadline described the project as an “action thriller with martial arts elements.” It could end up being Fist of Fury or Supercop, but set in the Star Wars universe.
The Star Wars franchise has always benefited from exploring new genres. Solo, for instance, was a heist movie, while The Mandalorian has played in a number of genre sandboxes—the season 2 premiere was a “slay the dragon” narrative. The prospect of a martial arts series about the resurgence of the Sith is practically mouth-watering—or maybe "eye-watering" would be a more apt descriptor.
