Amandla Stenberg

Image: HasbroHasbro’s latest Star Wars reveals may have been ostensibly for its villain-themed “Imperial March” this month, but really, it was all about The Acolyte. Just a day after we got our first look at the next Star Wars series in action, Hasbro came prepared with a bevy of new figures inspired by the show, and then some.The Acolyte figures sadly won’t be out until fall this year, but it’s still nice to see Hasbro has a lot of plans for the show across both its 6" Black Series and 3.75" Vintage Collection toy lines.…

Screenshot: LucasfilmStar Wars’ next live-action project is one of its most ambitious yet—a series that will bring a previously unexplored era to the small screen, and with it darkness. The Acolyte, a story that will foretell the downfall of the Jedi Order from its highest highs and examine the rise of the Dark Side, is nearly here, and we finally have a look at its sinister heart.Lucasfilm and Disney have released the very first trailer for Leslye Headland’s The Acolyte, the first live-action adaptation of Star Wars’…

Screenshot: LucasfilmThe Jedi are talking to Mother Aniseya, played by Jodie Turner-Smith, described as the leader of an independent “coven of witches” that places high value on the preservation of their practices and beliefs. While she’s an entirely new character, all her face markings, her gesturing, and her “Mother” title may have some High Republic fans’ minds afire: it certainly sounds a lot like the Path of the Open Hand.Introduced as a major faction in the second phase of High Republic stories—themselves set a…

An intergalactic crime spree leads to the unraveling of a dark conspiracy in the new trailer for The Acolyte, the next Star Wars series set to premiere June 4 on Disney+.  The new series stars Lee Jung-jae and Amandla Stenberg, the former playing Sol, a revered Jedi master, and the latter playing Mae, his one-time padawan, who’s grown into a dangerous warrior. Their paths cross years later as they set out to investigate a series of harrowing murders targeting Jedi.  That inquiry, as one would expect, leads…

When Star Wars first arrived in the world—back when it was just the original trilogy, mountains of toys, and one peculiar holiday special—fans knew where things stood. The Jedi were the good guys; Darth Vader and his pals were the baddies. But in the decades since, things have gotten a lot murkier across both sides of the Force.James Mangold on his Future Star Wars Film | io9 InterviewSpeaking to C Magazine, Amandla Stenberg—soon to star in Star Wars series The Acolyte, created by Russian Doll’s Leslye Headland for…

You feel like for something to be “Star Wars,” there are only two prerequisites. One, set it in the stars. Two, there should be wars. But the upcoming Disney+ show The Acolyte is only embracing one of those staples. It’s very much set in a galaxy far, far, away but, for the first time, it’ll be set in a time of star peace.The show, which is expected to hit Disney+ in 2024, was created by Leslye Headland and is set near the end of the High Republic era in Star Wars. So, well before the prequels. But even at the start of…

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We haven’t known much of what to expect from Star Wars: The Acolyte—the Disney+ series from Leslye Headland (Russian Doll)—other than it’s set at the end of the High Republic era around 100 years before The Phantom Menace, will explore the Dark Side, and has a ridiculously talented cast. At Star Wars Celebration Europe, we learned more about this intriguing project, and saw the first footage which revealed a 2024 release. Connecting the Series to the Prequels and Original TrilogyHeadland arrived on stage at Celebration…

Image: LucasfilmIt’s not just the future of Star Wars TV we might get a glimpse of at Celebration, but its past as well—one mysterious Disney+ project we’ve seen very little of is The Acolyte, Leslye Headland’s dark, Jedi-infused mystery series set during the final days of the High Republic era. We know there’s a very intriguing cast attached to this series, including Amandla Stenberg, Dafne Keen, Lee Jung-jae, and more, and we know it’s going to examine the lingering specterof the Dark Side as the Republic and the…

Stills from some of the genre films coming to Sundance 2023.Image: SundanceThe 2023 movie season kicks into high gear this week with the start of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Each year, Sundance is where many of the big, buzzy, independent films start their journeys to either box office success or critical glory—and, with the festival now being both digital and in-person, audiences everywhere can participate.Sundance might be best known for its dramatic fare (like last year’s best picture winner, Coda, which premiered…