Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman Reveals Why ‘The Acolyte’ Was Cancelled
While a new chapter in Star Wars history is unfolding before our eyes with the debut of Skeleton Crew on Disney+, the franchise’s future in streaming remains clouded.
When Disney+ first launched in 2019, it was anchored by The Mandalorian, which introduced fans to the era of the New Republic. After the astounding success of the series, Star Wars quickly became a pillar of Disney’s streaming strategy.


The Mandalorian & Grogu
Lucasfilm initially found success in animation with Star Wars: The Clone Wars and The Bad Batch. Season 2 of The Mandalorian also received rave reviews and high viewership numbers. Unfortunately, however, the wheels began to fall off.
‘Boba Fett’ and ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ Underwhelm
After The Book of Boba Fett failed to live up to the standard set by The Mandalorian, Obi-Wan Kenobi was unable to get the franchise back on track.
Then came Andor. Widely regarded as one of the best Star Wars stories ever, Andor was a critical darling and largely a ratings failure.
Lucasfilm turned back to Din Djarin and Grogu to right the ship. The Mandalorian Season 3, however, was not held in the same regard as the first two seasons.


Source: Lucasfilm
While Ahsoka was a relative success for Star Wars on streaming, the next release, The Acolyte, would prove to be especially divisive.
‘The Acolyte’
Set roughly 100 years before the events of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, The Acolyte was billed as a mystery-thriller that would introduce audiences to the beloved era of the High Republic.
Before the series aired, however, conservatives began to label the series as “woke.” It was a charge that only got louder as the show went on.


Photo: Star Wars
Additionally, some Star Wars fans took issue with the show’s creative decisions, which they argued broke canon and undermined the stories that came before it.
Why the Series Was Cancelled
Perhaps it was no surprise then that Disney pulled the plug on The Acolyte after just one season. While many of the show’s detractors celebrated, arguing that its creative decisions undermined it, the truth was more complicated.
In the end, the downfall of The Acolyte had more to do with its astronomical budget ($180 million) than politics.’


Photo: Lucasfilm
The Acolyte needed to be a hit for the kind of money that Disney was sinking into the show, and it simply wasn’t.
Alan Bergman Explains
In a recent interview with Vulture, Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman was asked about the cancellation of The Acolyte. As we expected, it came down to money.


(L-R): Yord Fandar (Charlie Barnett) and Tasi Lowa (Thara Schöön) in Lucasfilm’s THE ACOLYTE, season one, exclusively on Disney+. ©2024 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.
“So as it relates to Acolyte, we were happy with our performance, but it wasn’t where we needed it to be given the cost structure of that title, quite frankly, to go and make a season two. So that’s the reason why we didn’t do that,” he explained.
What’s Next For ‘Star Wars’
With The Mandalorian’s story continuing in theaters, Lucasfilm only has one more season of Andor and a second season of Ahsoka in development. The question, then, is what is next?
Perhaps the easiest answer would be more Skeleton Crew. So far, the film has been lauded by critics and fans alike while also avoiding many of the political pitfalls that hurt The Acolyte.


(L-R) Neel (Robert Timothy Smith) and Hayna (Hala Finley) in Lucasfilm’s STAR WARS: SKELETON CREW, exclusively on Disney+. ©2024 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.
On the other hand, however, Skeleton Crew has not received the same ratings as its predecessors.
In the Vulture interview, Bergman admitted that Disney was taking a wait-and-see approach to the series.


(L-R) KB (Kyrianna Kratter), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) and Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers) in Lucasfilm’s STAR WARS: SKELETON CREW, exclusively on Disney+. ©2024 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.
“Skeleton Crew is in process now, so we’ll see. We’ve seen some growth on that. We’ll see how that goes. As you said, the reviews have been excellent on Skeleton Crew, so we’ll have to see how that all plays out as it moves forward,” he explained.
Mystery ‘Star Wars’ Series Are in Development
As for the future of Star Wars on streaming, the Disney Entertainment Co-Chair says plans are in place.


Photo: Lucasfilm
“And then we’re looking at a number of additional series that are in development. We’ll see what we decide to do. As I said earlier, they have to be great, and when we’re in the position where we think we have what we want, we’re going to move forward.”