The Star Wars: The Acolyte Mysteries That Will Never Be Answered Without a Season 2
Exclusive: While The Acolyte's cancellation has left us with questions that may never be answered, creator Leslye Headland recently gave us some clues regarding what season 2 would have been about.
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This article contains spoilers for Star Wars: The Acolyte
Disney isn’t moving forward with a second season of The Acolyte, according to Deadline, which is an absolute shame. This Star Wars series offered a unique take on the galaxy far, far away, not only exploring an era that had yet to be shown in live-action but also exposing unexpected sides of the Jedi and Sith. The finale even introduced Darth Plagueis, a villain fans have longed to see in live action since he was first referenced in Revenge of the Sith, and promised to delve deeper into the story of Emperor Palpatine’s enigmatic master than ever before. But Disney’s decision means that we’ll never get to see that story, at least not as envisioned in The Acolyte.
A second season would have also shown us Osha’s next steps as Qimir’s Sith acolyte, Mae’s new life on Coruscant, and Master Vernestra trying to get to the bottom of this whole mess. Presumably, we would have seen more Yoda, too. While the show’s cancellation has left us with more than a few questions about The Acolyte‘s lingering mysteries, we caught up with showrunner Leslye Headland following the show’s finale in July and she gave us some clues as to what season 2 might have looked like.
What was Darth Plagueis’s plan?
Other than being a creepy guy lurking in a cave, we only know bits and pieces regarding how Darth Plagueis would have fit into the story moving forward. Headland told Den of Geek after the finale that she “wanted to introduce [Plagueis] as the complication for season 2.” Presumably, Plagueis was meant to be revealed as Qimir’s master, pulling the strings from the shadows and encouraging Qimir to seek out Osha and Mae for his own Sith master plan. But what was that plan?
Based on what we know from Revenge of the Sith, the Sith Lord was obsessed with learning how to manipulate midi-chlorians to prolong and even create life through the Force. Given Osha and Mae’s unique conception through the mysterious vergence on Brendok (more on that in a bit), it makes sense that Plagueis would have a vested interest in the twins and the Force witch coven that created them. Headland hinted as much to us, teasing that the Sith in The Acolyte are in an “arms race” with the Jedi. Learning how to harness the life-creating powers known to Mother Aniseya and her coven would definitely be a way for Plagueis to gain an advantage over his enemies.
We also know that Plagueis’s obsession with these secrets will eventually lead to his undoing at the hands of a future apprentice named Palpatine. The Acolyte seemed ready to fully explore the opening chapters of the tragedy of Plagueis the Wise in a second season and that makes the end of the show even more heartbreaking.
What happened between Qimir and Master Vernestra?
The finale makes clear that Qimir and Jedi Master Vernestra Rwoh have a history. Qimir was once Vern’s padawan but something happened before the events of the show that pushed him toward the dark side. Headland said of the reveal that “Vernestra doesn’t know that her former pupil is a Sith, she just knows that he’s alive. And that there was some sort of confrontation between the two of them, where he went to the dark side.”
The scars that we see on Qimir’s back in episode 6 potentially hint at their confrontation escalating into violence—it definitely looks like the markings could have been left by Vernestra’s lightsaber whip. The way that Qimir talks about the Jedi also indicates that he became disillusioned with their practices, even telling Osha that he was betrayed by his master. Given how the Brendok situation was handled, it wouldn’t be a surprise if there were other events that the Jedi swept under the rug. Perhaps we would have seen all that backstory as a new set of flashbacks in season 2?
What is the Stranger’s Sith name?
Qimir is known only as The Stranger once he reveals himself as a Sith Lord, but we never learned what his actual Sith name is. Fans speculated for weeks about this detail, even looking back to the old Legends continuity for clues. Is The Stranger actually Darth Tenebrous? Not very likely. Or is he Darth Venamis? No clue. It seems more likely that he would have had an original Sith name created for the show, but it remains to be seen whether we’ll ever actually learn that name.
What happened to Mother Koril?
Did Mother Koril survive the chaos on Brendok? While Headland hasn’t said either way, we never saw Koril’s body lying alongside the rest of the dead coven as their home collapsed. The last time we saw her was right before Kelnacca became possessed. Her corporeal form vanished into black wispy smoke, not to be seen again on the show. If Mae was able to somehow survive her fall all those years ago, then there’s a chance that a powerful witch like Koril was also able to survive the chaos on Brendok, too.
The possible return of one of their mothers and a potential resurgence of the coven under new (and much more vengeful) leadership certainly would have been an interesting thread to explore in both the collective and individual journeys of Mae and Osha. But without a second season, we’ll never learn whether we were right about Mother Koril or not.
What would Yoda’s Role have been in season 2?
With its final shot, The Acolyte teased that Yoda would be at least tangentially involved in season 2. In the show’s final scene, Master Vern enters Yoda’s chamber for guidance. But before we can hear what wisdom Yoda imparts to the Jedi Master, the screen cuts to black. Presumably, season 2 would have explored this scene further. What Yoda’s role might have been beyond that is unclear.
Headland told Den of Geek that introducing Yoda was “always the endpoint” of season 1, explaining that “if you’re going to introduce Plagueis, you have to introduce a worthy adversary.” But beyond leveling the playing field, Headland was also interested in “exploring why Yoda knows about the Rule of Two” in The Phantom Menace.
But although Yoda’s presence would definitely have been an interesting addition to the series moving forward, it doesn’t seem like The Acolyte had any plans to suddenly become The Yoda Show. When asked if more Yoda could be expected in a potential second season, Headland emphasized that fans should expect the “influence” of Yoda. While it’s possible Yoda would have appeared a few times in season 2, it doesn’t sound like he would have suddenly become the main character either.
What did the next part of Mae and Osha’s stories look like?
The Acolyte ends with Mae and Osha effectively switching places (but not identities this time). Mae’s memories have been wiped of Qimir’s existence and the knowledge of Osha’s survival. Her last memory is of the compound on Brendok burning. In the final scenes of the finale, Mae is taken into custody by Vernestra and brought to Coruscant. Meanwhile, Osha leaves Brendok with Qimir—after killing Sol and uncovering the truth of Mother Aniseya’s death—to begin training with him.
Osha’s next steps would have undoubtedly seen her delve deeper into the dark side, learning the ways of the Sith, while continuing to navigate an uneasy alliance with Qimir. Headland teased what that dynamic would have looked like in season 2, saying, “As evidenced by the final shot in the season, we have these two people who are joining together. What I would like to explore is how complicated that relationship may become when one has to crave the power and one has to hold it. That would become complicated for two people who consider themselves equal.”
We may have also seen whether or not her relationship with Qimir progressed in a more romantic direction. While Headland didn’t reveal to us whether Osha and Qimir were destined to have a more intimate connection in a second season, she did go as far as to say that by the end of season 1 Qimir “essentially turns into a romantic lead.” Take that as you will.
Mae’s journey forward is less clear by the end of the series. Will she help the Jedi try to find Osha after inevitably learning once again that she survived the fire? Is she still going to be incredibly hostile toward the Jedi when remembering what they did to her mother, or did her anger disappear with her memories of Qimir? Mae isn’t quite a blank slate, but she’s also no longer the person we met at the start of the series.
What the heck is up with the vergence on Brendok?
One of the biggest mysteries that we’ll probably never see resolved now is the cause of the vergence on Brendok. A vergence is a space that is particularly strong with the Force, and we know that this one was used by the coven to create Osha and Mae. This is clearly a source of power too large to be left unchecked by either the Jedi or Sith, but we don’t know how big of a role the vergence would have actually played in a second season.
Perhaps Plagueis would have paid the planet a visit with Osha at some point in season 2? Or would the Jedi have sent more knights to investigate Brendok further? After all, when all the Jedi who were once stationed on the planet end up being murdered, that should raise some alarms back at the temple. How this would have all played out will unfortunately remain a mystery. What we do know is that Headland had a lot planned out for the show’s future.
“I have lots of stories I’d love to tell,” Headland told us at the end of our chat in July. “You can tell I love these characters.”
Star Wars: The Acolyte is streaming now on Disney+.