Earlier this week, it was revealed that the Disney+ Original series, “Star Wars: The Acolyte”, had been cancelled after one season and wouldn’t be returning for another.

Set during the High Republic Era of the Star Wars saga, “The Acolyte” tells the story of an investigation into a shocking crime spree that pits a respected Jedi master against a dangerous warrior from his past.

While the series premiere had an impressive initial premiere, where it pulled in 4.8 million views in one day and drove 11.1 million views globally based on five days of streaming, making it the biggest series premiere on Disney+ of 2024.  

The show’s viewership drastically reduced as audiences didn’t return to check out further episodes, with the show completely dropping off the Nielsen streaming chart in the US, highlighting why Disney+ decided not to continue with more episodes.

During an interview with EW, Lee Jung-jae, who played the role of Master Sol in the series, was asked about the cancellation, to which he replied:

“As you know, my character had died already in the first season.  So I wouldn’t have appeared in the second season if there was one anyway. But personally speaking, I really loved Leslye’s writing. I thought that she was a great writer and director who was very talented in the storytelling, as well as creating characters and creating meaningful structures within the story. So I was actually personally really looking forward to watching a season 2 with her at the helm.”

He added:

“To hear the news, I was quite surprised personally as well.  Honestly, I am hoping that maybe there could be changes in the future.  Because you never know what’s going to happen. So on a personal level, I really hope we could get to see further stories of Leslye’s second season.”

Roger’s Take: It makes sense why Lee didn’t think he would be returning, but I wouldn’t be surprised if most of those working on this show assumed this would have been a hit, and since a Star Wars show hadn’t ever been “cancelled” before, they probably all thought there would be some more.  Unfortunately, this show just failed to connect with a larger audience and didn’t meet the expectations for viewership that a show of this cost requires.

You can watch “The Acolyte” on Disney+ now.

Do you think “The Acolyte” will return?  Let me know on social media!

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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