STAR WARS: THE ACOLYTE Showrunner on Why She Hired a Writer Who's Never Seen Any STAR WARS Movies
Here’s something about Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Acolyte that is sure to spark some conversation among fans. Series showrunner Leslye Headland (Russian Doll) has revealed that she hired a writer who "had literally never seen Star Wars" to work on the show, and in a recent interview, she explained why.
The first trailer for the series was released last week and it was met with mixed reactions from Star Wars fans. There are elements from it that looked exciting, but a lot of other aspects didn’t seem to quite click for fans. I’m personally curious about the era of the Star Wars universe that’s being explored.
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Headland talked about developing the eight-episode first season and explained why it was important to her to bring someone into the writers' room who initially had no knowledge of the Star Wars franchise, saying:
"I just thought it would be good to have the perspective of a person that had literally never seen Star Wars until she was in the room. And she said to me, 'Why do you want me in this room? I’ve never seen Star Wars. I have no idea. I think there’s a dog in it, but I don’t know anything.'
"And I was like, 'First of all, you’re an incredible writer, but that’s why I want you here. I want you to be questioning narrative. I don’t want myself, who’s a lifelong fan, to just be relying on particular references in order to create emotional beats. I want those emotional beats to be earned and checked by someone that isn’t super familiar with it.'"
I’m mostly surprised by the fact that Headland had found someone who had never seen any Star Wars movies! Especially something working in Hollywood, But hey, apparently those people exist! It didn’t last long as the writer ended up watching the films:
"And it was really funny because she finally watched the Original Trilogy over that Christmas. She watched the Prequels, too, but she kept texting me [about the Original Trilogy] and was like, 'Luke and Vader are...' All those things that we’ve known forever were blowing her mind.
"She was like, 'Luke and Leia are brother and sister!? What the f*ck!?' She was writing all these things to me, and I just thought it was so funny. So she educated herself in order to be in the room, but it was really fun to have somebody like her to help collaborate."
I can see why Headland would see the benefit of hiring a writer who has never experienced the franchise before because sometimes it’s good to have an outside perspective on things. But, the inclusion of someone like this is sure to raise some eyebrows because Star Wars fans want to see these projects carefully crafted by those knowledgeable with the stories and lore.
The story is described as “a mystery-thriller that will take viewers into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers in the final days of the High Republic era.” The High Republic is set 100 years before the Skywalker Saga begins.
In The Acolyte, “An investigation into a shocking crime spree pits a respected Jedi Master (Lee Jung-jae) against a dangerous warrior from his past (Stenberg). As more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all is not what it seems…."
Star Wars: The Acolytle arrives on Disney+ with a two-episode premiere on June 4th.