Deadline are reporting that Lucasfilm have not taken up the option for a second series of The Acolyte and have cancelled the show, and whilst this will not come as a surprise to many, we wish folks had given this series more time and ignored the haters.
Word of the decision comes more than a month after the eight-episode first season of the series from creator, director, executive producer and showrunner Leslye Headland wrapped its run on Disney+.
The news is not entirely surprising. The Acolyte did OK with critics, with 78% on Rotten Tomatoes, but divided Star Wars fans, which was reflected in its overall viewership.
Driven by interest into the venerable franchise, The Acolyte got off to a strong start when it launched June 4 with two episodes, generating 4.8M views in its first day on the streamer to rank as the biggest series premiere on Disney+ this year. The tally rose to 11.1 million views globally after five days of streaming. Corroborating Disney’s data, the series made its debut on Nielsen’s Top 10 originals chart in its premiere week at No. 7 (488 million minutes viewed), climbing to No. 6 the following week.
But The Acolyte could not sustain the momentum, dropping out of the Top 10 in Week 3 and staying off before returning at No. 10 after the release of the finale (335M minutes, believed to be the lowest for a Star Wars series finale).
Like fellow global streamers Netflix and Prime Video, Disney+ has a high viewership threshold for renewing high-end, big-budget series that cost well above $100M per season to make.
Whilst we wait for official confirmation from Disney/Lucasfilm on this story, you can stream The Acolyte on Disney+ now.
