The Disney+ Star Wars spin-off has become the next victim of the #CancelYourGays trope
BY LANIA HAMILTON, IMAGE BY DISNEY+
The Acolyte premiered on 4 June and attracted over four million views on its first day, making it the biggest premiere of the year. This impressively broke previous Disney+ streaming records. This informal accolade had previously been held by titles including Little Mermaid and The Bear. The show features a diverse LGBTQIA cast, including notably the first trans actor in the Star Wars franchise, Abigail Thorn. She was joined by a stellar lineup of Amandla Stenberg, Charlie Barnett, Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen – childhood star of Logan – among others.
Set before The Phantom Menace, The Acolyte follows a former Padawan’s (Stenberg) reunion with her Jedi Master (Barnett) as they investigate interstellar crimes. Stenberg identifies as non-binary and gay, and also Barnett identifies as gay. As well as casting queer actors, Acolyte creator, Leslye Headland, confirmed in an interview that she is “into” The Acolyte being “the gayest Star Wars yet”, as well as confirming the existing canon of R2-D2 being a lesbian. Arguably, the queerness of large franchises such as Star Wars provides a remarkable litmus test of mainstream attitudes toward the LGBTQIA community, which is why its cancellation is equally noteworthy.
Some fans have taken to X to voice their concerns: “I know a lot of weird people on the internet made it their whole personality to hate it… but it was genuinely some of my favourite Star Wars… period. Many people I know enjoyed it. Sad day.”
“The Acolyte getting cancelled is maybe the most disappointing thing that I’ve witnessed from Star Wars in a while. and that’s saying something!” another wrote.
The production company, Lucasfilm, however, in spite of the show’s great success and queer representation, has decided not to proceed with season two. The show was cancelled a month after the release of its first season. The news is seemingly unsurprising to some fans — with online abuse and disgruntled viewers, Forbes reports that the divisive viewership is explainable by the “racism, misogyny and overall harassment of the cast, which has poisoned every conversation about this show”. On Rotten Tomatoes, the show received a 78% approval rating. However, Disney+ and Lucasfilm have yet to release a statement on the nature of the cancellation.
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