Summary

• The cancelation of The Acolyte was a big mistake by Lucasfilm, leaving many plot threads unresolved and forgoing the potential to improve upon season 1.
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars was unpopular at first before being allowed to grow and becoming one of the best Star Wars TV shows.
• The cancelation of The Acolyte shows Hollywood prioritizing business metrics over storytelling and potential redemption.

The cancelation of Darth Plagueis in Star Wars canon and Yoda's increased role alongside Vernestra Rwoh, The Acolyte season 2's story had a lot of potential.

Unfortunately, story of The Acolyte season 2. While it is worth acknowledging that The Acolyte season 1 was not fantastic and had its share of issues, Star Wars: The Clone Wars proves that canceling the show is a mistake.

Lucasfilm has not officially commented on the record about The Acolyte's cancelation, but it has been reported by many reliable Hollywood trades.

The Acolyte’s Cancelation Ruins Any Chance Of Redeeming Season 1’s Weaker Story

The Acolyte Season 2's Teases Had A Lot Of Potential

Overall, The Acolyte season 1's story had its issues. The focus of the show being placed on Osha and Mae was largely a misfire, with the story being told about their backstory not being compelling enough to carry the promise of a Sith-Jedi confrontation in Star Wars' High Republic era. Combined with some shoddy moments of execution throughout, The Acolyte season 1 was overall not as strong as many had hoped. This is not to say The Acolyte had no redeeming qualities, however.

The cast of The Acolyte was mostly fantastic, and the teases about where the show's most intriguing characters could go in season 2 were overly exciting. If the show continued, The Acolyte could have redeemed season 1's weaker foundations by building a story that more fans wanted to see, specifically centered around the Sith rising to power before the events of the first chronological Star Wars movie. As such, canceling the show was a mistake, with Star Wars: The Clone Wars proving this beyond all doubt.

Star Wars Has A Long History Of Redemption

Star Wars Has Many Strong Stories That Began On Weaker Foundations

As alluded to, many Star Wars stories of the past were given time to build on poorer beginnings. One such story is now considered among the best-ranked Star Wars TV shows of all time: The Clone Wars. Star Wars: The Clone Wars began as a theatrical movie in 2008, which was critically panned and a commercial failure for Lucasfilm. The movie received a 19% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes from critics, and only a 40% approval rating from fans, all while not coming close to the commercial success of live-action Star Wars films.

If George Lucas had listened to this hatred, Star Wars: The Clone Wars would never have had the chance to redeem itself...

The TV show based on the film then began releasing in 2008, with Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 1 receiving a similarly negative response. While the reception was slightly more positive, many still criticized the show for the same reasons as the movie, all while directing hate towards new characters like Ahsoka Tano and the development of pre-existing characters like Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. If George Lucas had listened to this hatred, Star Wars: The Clone Wars would never have had the chance to redeem itself.

As it turned out, this eventually happened. Now, Star Wars: The Clone Wars is regarded as one of the best Star Wars TV shows ever created, one that only improved with time. The first two seasons were ittedly rocky, but seasons 3-7 include some of the most memorable, action-packed, emotional, layered explorations of Star Wars canon, the characters within it, the worlds they inhabit, and the period in which it is set. Star Wars: The Clone Wars began poorly, yet found its footing as it went on; The Acolyte will not get that chance.

George Lucas' prequel trilogy was also panned on release, yet he stuck the landing with Revenge of the Sith, again proving The Acolyte's cancelation to be a mistake.

The Acolyte’s Cancelation Is A Worrying Hollywood Symptom

Story Does Not Take Precedent Over Business-Minded Metrics Anymore

The sad truth is that The Acolyte being canceled is a worrying symptom of Hollywood of late. The show did not perform well, had low viewership numbers, and was not received well by sections of the Star Wars fanbase. However, rather than look past these elements and attempt to take the parts of The Acolyte that did not work to craft a more compelling story going forward, the show was canceled.

This proves how much Hollywood has come to center around box office gross, viewership, or exposure rather than stories, characters, actors, crew, and potential for filmmaking. If those latter elements mattered, Lucasfilm would be more willing to take a chance on The Acolyte and build up the story to become better than it was before, just as Lucas did with Star Wars: The Clone Wars over a decade ago. Unfortunately, the business-minded status of Hollywood won out, leaving The Acolyte's promising future and redemptive story in the past.