How ‘The Acolyte’ Will Tell a Star Wars Story From a Unique Perspective
The mastermind behind The Acolyte is promising a Star Wars story unlike anything that has come before it.
When Leslye Headland first approached Lucasfilm with her idea for a Star Wars project, she pitched the series as “Frozen meets Kill Bill.”
Four years later, the first trailer for The Acolyte has arrived, bringing the era of the High Republic to live-action for the first time ever. More than just being set in a unique time period, however, Headland and her team wanted The Acolyte to tell their story in a fresh way.
“One thing to know about the show is that we’ve been talking about it as a mystery-thriller. It is a serialized story, so each episode gives you more information about the story,” Headland explained to The Hollywood Reporter.
“We were obviously influenced by samurai films and wuxia films, but also films like Rashomon, where you see one story and then you see it done a different way. So, what separates [‘Star Wars: The Acolyte’] from some of the other Star Wars series is that it’s told in that particular way.”
Headland Wanted One Writer Who Knew Nothing About Star Wars
In order to give the series its unique tone and perspective, Headland assembled a writer’s room that featured both Star Wars fans and writers who were unfamiliar with the franchise.
“I just thought it would be good to have the perspective of a person that had literally never seen Star Wars until she was in the room. And she said to me, “Why do you want me in this room? I’ve never seen Star Wars. I have no idea. I think there’s a dog in it, but I don’t know anything,” the showrunner explained.
“And I was like, “First of all, you’re an incredible writer, but that’s why I want you here. I want you to be questioning narrative. And I don’t want myself, who’s a lifelong fan, to just be relying on particular references in order to create emotional beats. I want those emotional beats to be earned and checked by someone that isn’t super familiar with it.”
A New Perspective
While other Star Wars series have traditionally told the story from the perspective of the Jedi, The Acolyte will also be told from the viewpoint of a young Sith warrior. For Headland, the idea was to present the series’ events from both perspectives.
“You definitely get the point of view of the Jedi,” she explained. “Especially in terms of Amandla’s character and trying to stop her and hunt her down. But you also get enough of Amandla’s character’s perspective that you can also see how both of them exist simultaneously.”
Promising to both explore a fan-favorite era of Star Wars history and turn the traditional story structure of the franchise on its head is a difficult task. Based on the first trailer for The Acolyte, however, Headland and her team may have hit their mark.
The Acolyte will premiere on June 4 exclusively on Disney+.
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