Star Wars Celebration: The Acolyte is “Frozen Meets Kill Bill”

At Star Wars Celebration 2023 in London, the calaxy far, far away is coming to Earth…but looking back to a time even longer ago than usual. That’s because during the announcement panel that just started, The Acolyte‘s creative team have taken to the stage, with Leslye Headlund teasing a few cryptic details about the show, including a “is X meets Y” metaphor that’s sure to have fans speculating about its meaning all the way up until we start to see actual footage from the show. 

After being escorted to the stage by a Wookiee, Headlund said that Star Wars “completely saved my life,” when she got interested in it.

“I got to watch the prequels as I went into college,” Headlund told the audience, adding that the new trilogy “felt like an opportunity” to work in the franchise. When is it set? “When I pitched Kathleen the show, I really wanted to delve into the Star Wars universe and tell the story of this world from the perspective…of the villains, of the bad guys. What I pitched to Kathy was Frozen meets Kill Bill. Shockingly, she didn’t kick me out of the building she was intrigued…it became apparent, we were going to have to set this between the High Republic and the prequels…this is when the bad guys are outnumbered. They are the underdog.”

“This is the furthest back we’ve been in live-action,” Headlund said, which is an opportunity to have “lots of Jedi.” Kal Nakka will be a major character and the actor will soon be revealed.

“I went back to George’s inspirations of martial arts films,” Headlund said. As there is no war at this point in the timeline, Headlund says there are “personal wars,” in relationships between the characters.

Various members of the cast also chimed in to share their enthusiasm and tease a little bit of what could be coming when the show finally makes its way to our eyeballs.

Lee Jung-jae reveals he is playing a Jedi Master and it was the first time he ever touched a lightsaber. Joonas Suatamo is playing a new, original wookie in the series. Jodie Turner-Smith is playing an original character, though she still felt like she, “was stepping into really big shoes.” Manny Jacinto shares the excitement he has on set, constantly proclaiming, “We’re doing Star Wars, baby!”

Check back throughout the day for lots more updates from Star Wars Celebration.

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