Star Wars: The Acolyte Finally Introduces Major Sith Lord Into Live-Action

The season finale of Star Wars: The Acolyte premiered on Tuesday, and it definitely plunged the Star Wars galaxy into new territory along the way. The live-action Disney+ series, which is set during the events of the High Republic era, has folded in a lot of past and future Star Wars lore along the way — and now, that includes the live-action debut of a surprising character. Spoilers for the season finale of Star Wars: The Acolyte below! Only look if you want to know!

Early on in the episode, Osha (Amandla Stenberg) and Qimir (Manny Jacinto) prepare to leave their encampment on a mysterious planet to track down Sol (Lee Jung-jae) and Mae (Amandla Stenberg). As they leave, an alien figure can be seen in the shadows of the planet’s tombs. While his name is not said outright in the episode, it is pretty safe to assume this is Darth Plagueis, the legendary Sith Lord who is instrumental in training Palpatine.

Who Is Star Wars’ Darth Plagueis?

A member of the Muun alien race, Darth Plagueis’ use of the Force was juxtaposed with a desire to become immortal — even if he needed to resort to science to make it happen. Working with his apprentice, he conducted a litany of experiments to use Midichlorians to create sentient life. He was ultimately murdered by his apprentice, who we later learn was a younger Palpatine. While his canon role was largely confined to the “Tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise” that Palpatine later tells Anakin Skywalker, his origin was subsequently expanded upon in the 2012 Legends novel Star Wars: Darth Plagueis. Fans had previously theorized that The Acolyte would help establish Darth Plagueis’ canon in some way, given his proximity to the events of the series and Osha and Mae’s unique origin story.

“Yes, I do. If I continue to get to tell this story, I know how I would like that to play out,” The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland previously said of Darth Plagueis in an interview with Nerdist. “And I would say I think it’s pretty complicated and messy.”

What Is Star Wars: The Acolyte About?

Set during The High Republic, Star Wars: The Acolyte delivers an investigation into a mysterious string of crimes, which pits a Jedi master against his former apprentice in a race to uncover the truth. The more that the pair learn about the situation, the darker their journey becomes, as they confront things that darker than either of them could have imagined.

The series stars Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Charlie Barnett, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Dean-Charles Chapman, Joonas Suotamo, and Carrie-Anne Moss. Star Wars: The Acolyte premiered on Disney+ on June 4th.