Disney+ cancels "Star Wars: Acolyte" after dismal reviews and ratings
It was supposed to be a hit. However, it quickly turned out to be a flop. Poor reviews and hordes of disappointed fans led Disney+ to decide to end the Star Wars universe series after the first season.
3:26 PM EDT, August 20, 2024
It had to end this way. The highly anticipated "Star Wars: Acolyte" series had a good opening. After the first five days of airing, viewership exceeded 11 million, placing it among the top series at the beginning of June. With each subsequent episode, however, it only got worse. The number of viewers kept decreasing, and their online ratings left no illusions—what had the potential to be a hit turned into a flop.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the series received only 18% positive reviews from viewers. A month after the finale aired, Lucasfilm decided to end the production.
The negative reaction from fans was to be expected, as "Acolyte" faced harsh criticism ever since its first trailer. The show's showrunner, Leslye Headland, was under fire from fans as she emphasized in interviews that she wanted to make George Lucas's universe more inclusive, for example, for LGBTQ+ people.
What is "Star Wars: Acolyte" about?
"Acolyte" presents viewers with the Jedi Order experiencing its golden age, set in a period we have not seen so far in the movies or series of the Star Wars universe. The action occurs 100 years before the events known from "Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace." It's an opportunity to look at what might have led to the fall of the Jedi Order.
