Every Staunch ‘The Acolyte’ Hater Will Empathize With Actress Amandla Stenberg After One Real-life Plot Twist
- Amidst the rising controversies and backlash over Disney canceling The Acolyte, the lead star Amandla Stenberg has commented on the situation.
- No other Star Wars actor has come forward to stand with the actors and the makers of the show despite the widely evident contrast besides Ahmed Best.
- Furthermore, Forbes reported that it took a whopping sum of $630,000 for every minute of screen time.
Fans have the power to make or break any project. Their biggest power is the combination of time and attention they devote to any movie or series, eventually making it a superhit and leaving it for the wolves. Despite being a massive Star Wars project, The Acolyte failed to receive the same love from the wide fanbase that the other projects have enjoyed so far.
The show, detached from the burgeoning Skywalker saga, intended to create a unique niche for itself with newer characters and intriguing storylines. However, it worked against Disney and Lucas Films to stray away from the very essence that makes Star Wars projects great.
Ahmed Best stands in solidarity with The Acolyte star Amandla Stenberg
Amidst the rising controversies and backlash over Disney canceling The Acolyte, the lead star Amandla Stenberg has finally opened up about what she truly feels about the situation. The toxicity of the fanbase that she experienced not just when the show aired but even when she was cast as the lead is heartbreaking.
Confronting the happenings and sharing how she truly feels, Stenberg posted a video on Instagram where she said,
It’s not a huge shock for me. Of course, I live in the bubble of my own reality but for those who aren’t aware there has been a rampage of vitriol that we have faced since the show was even announced—when it was still just a concept and no one had even seen it. That’s when we started experiencing a rampage of, I would say, hyper-conservative bigotry and vitriol, prejudice, hatred, and hateful language towards us.
And you know this really affected me when I first got the job because it’s just not something, even though I anticipated it happening, it’s not something you can fully understand what it feels like until it’s happening to you.
At the same time, she also appreciated the fans who supported her and made fan art dedicated to her. Nonetheless, the toxicity and negativity far outweighed the positivity and encouragement which led to extreme criticism. An entire legion of users came together to nitpick every detail of each episode on YouTube and thrash the show horribly.
Recently, Ahmed Best, the actor who played Jar Jar Binks in the prequel Star Wars movies, wrote in support of Stenberg. He chose to come forward in this situation since he faced a similar situation when he was a part of the Star Wars movies. The fandom never truly accepted let alone appreciate him or his character. Apart from Binks, Best also played Jedi Kelleran Beq in the Star Wars movies. Best captioned his Instagram post,
I will always stand in solidarity for artists who give 110% to their work and art. Keep shining queen.
No other Star Wars actor has come forward to stand with the actors and the makers of the show despite the widely evident contrast. The Obi-Wan Kenobi actor Ewan McGregor was forced to speak out against the racial comments and prejudice his costar received while in the Kenobi series. Nevertheless, there haven’t been any comments from the people of the Star Wars universe besides Best.
Why is The Acolyte canceled?
The reigning sentiment among the fans of the series is that Disney is fueling the fire of hatred by giving the haters what they want by canceling the series. The Acolyte season 1 ended with a cliffhanger so many fans were eagerly waiting for the next season to drop. However, the platform canceled the series citing reasons for low viewership.
A possible reason behind this could be the lack of a correlation between The Acolyte and the overarching Skywalker saga. Moreover, some fans do agree that the first few episodes were slow. But that’s the case with any new show that needs time to give the story a foundation for it to blossom into a satisfying narrative.
Furthermore, Forbes reported that it took a whopping sum of $630,000 for every minute of screen time. The show was made with a $180 million budget. If the show truly did not receive enough viewership, then it makes sense for Disney to pull the plug since their money is going down the drain.
The Acolyte is streaming on Disney+.
