It might get buried amidst the swamp of announcements, including the new Ahsoka trailer, a new Indiana Jones trailer, and the confirmation of three new Star Wars movies — including a movie that will be a sequel to The Rise of Skywalker and one that will tie up all the loose storylines swirling through The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett — but maybe the single most exciting project coming to Star Wars in the years ahead is The Acolyte, which is being described as a very different Star Wars show than the stuff currently streaming on Disney+.
The show comes from Leslye Headland, who previously was a creator on Netflix’s Russian Doll. The new show, set during the end of the “High Republic” era when the Jedi were at their most powerful, is billed as a “mystery-thriller” set in “a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers” and follows “a former Padawan reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes but discovers the forces they confront are more sinister than they ever anticipated.” Headland and the film’s cast were on hand in Star Wars Celebration to give a few glimpses of early footage from the show (which will not be made available online, at least not yet).
Star Wars Celebration 2023 Studio PanelGetty Images for Disney
READ MORE: The First Trailer For Ahsoka Is Here
From left to right in the image above, that’s Lee Jung-Jae, Charlie Barnett, Rebecca Henderson, Dafne Keen, Amandla Stenberg, Leslye Headland, Manny Jacinto, Dean-Charles Chapman, Jodie Turner-Smith and Joonas Suotamo.
Although not entirely confirmed, the word is that The Acolyte will essentially be about “The Rise of the Sith,” filtered through this mystery story. Which … sounds awesome? The fact that it’s set in a distinct Star Wars time period is great too. You don’t need to watch five shows to get the complete story; it should be relatively self-contained.
Star Wars: The Acolyte will premiere on Disney+ in 2024.
Sign. up for Disney+ here.
Famous TV Shows That Couldn’t Get Made Today
These well-known TV shows and franchises would have a lot of trouble getting on the air today.
