The Star Wars spin-off star has called out the “vitriol, prejudice, hatred and fateful language” the cast received
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGES BY DISNEY+
The Acolyte star Amandla Stenberg has spoken out about the recent shock cancellation of the Star Wars spin-off show, stating that “it’s not a huge shock”. Amandla took to Instagram on Wednesday 28 August to call out the “vitriol, prejudice, hatred and fateful language” that the cast faced following even the first announcement of the show.
The show, which broke streaming records on Disney+, had previously been championed by LGBTQIA viewers due to its diverse cast and queer storylines. Set 100 years before the events of The Phantom Menace, fans had anticipated that the show would be receiving a second series due to its initial success. However, on 19 August it was announced that the show had been axed.
Amandla Stenberg, who plays Osha, wrote to their Instagram story saying: “I’m gonna be transparent and say it’s not a huge shock for me. For those who aren’t aware, there has been a rampage of vitriol that we have faced since the show was announced.”
They continued: “We started experiencing a rampage of hyper-conservative bigotry and vitriol, prejudiced hatred, and hateful language towards us. This really affected me when I first got the job because even though I anticipated it happening, it’s not something you can fully understand until it happens to you.”
Adding that this experience made them realise that they had to “honour my value system by being vocal”, Amandla thanked LucasFilms for being “a f*cking awesome team”.
The Acolyte is yet another show which has faced the wrath of the #CancelYourGays trend which has taken other popular series like Amazon Prime’s The Wilds and Netflix’s Everything Now.
Earlier this year, Leslye Headland, the creator of The Acolyte, spoke out about the hatred the show had received, saying: “Anyone who engages in bigotry, racism or hate speech I don’t consider a fan.”
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