Another “Star Wars” story has come to a premature end. The latest Disney+ series set in the beloved sci-fi universe, “The Acolyte,” has been canceled after only one season, and Black Twitter and fans across social media are not happy about it.
The prequel series set in a galaxy far, far, away premiered on the streaming service earlier this year. Starring Amandla Stenberg (“The Hate U Give,” “Bodies, Bodies, Bodies”), the show is a mystery-thriller that took fans to the early days of the franchise’s history, the final moments of the “High Republic” era. It’s also one of the most diverse entries in the franchise at large, which led to racist review bombing from a certain sector of users, despite glowing reviews from critics.
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According to Deadline, the series started off strong in the ratings department, with the first two episodes reaching a reported 11.1 million views globally after five days of streaming. The ratings dipped after that, however, with the show only returning to Nielsen’s Top 10 originals chart for the series finale. The fandom was certainly divided on the series as a whole. Still, the decision to abandon the show altogether instead of letting it grow into something even stronger has already rubbed fans wrong online.
One user on X (formerly known as Twitter) called it one of “the worst decisions ever.” They added that “The Acolyte” was “finally pushing Star Wars into fresh directions,” and was “set up for an even better second season.”
Another fan shared similar sentiments about the series charting a new path for the often tedious franchise, adding that they think it got “canceled because the lead isn’t a white man.”
With Stenberg at the helm, the representation in the series was a first and particularly powerful, making the cancellation even more hurtful for fans. Writer Lyvie Scott posted, “i hate being a frustration crier but i didn’t realize how much i was pouring into this show … to finally feel seen within a franchise i’ve been riding for since i was 10, to get hate FOR WEEKS for daring to be excited, to be so hungry for validation … only to LOSE!!! again!!!!!”
Another user echoed the same feelings, adding that Black representation was far from all that made the show great. “We don’t get many SW films that show such a unique balance of the light side and dark side of the force and using polar opposite twins and switching their places does make for good tv. It just wasnt white enough and we know that’s what it was.”
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