For months fans have speculated over pieces of footage and rumours concerning how many characters Amandla Stenberg plays in The Acolyte. As time as gone on, there’s been many hints that Stenberg is playing two characters, twins, and now a newly released TV spot has given the biggest hint thus far.
If you’ve been keeping up with my posts in recent weeks, I’ve laid out the evidence that pointed towards Amandla Stenberg playing twins in the upcoming series and as more TV spots have been released, that theory seems to be coming true. I remember being at Star Wars Celebration last year and telling various people I hung out with that Stenberg was playing twins (paging Azzatru, Battlefront Updates, Star Wars Sessions, Star Wars Uplink). Last week a TV spot featuring a character played by Stenberg, who was being chased by Sol (Lee Jung Jae), that she didn’t kill a Jedi. The character looked exactly like the villainous Mae that Stenberg plays, but she was sporting different clothing and portrayed a different personality.
In a TV spot released today, we see that same scene play out, but this time the subtitles of the spot reveals that the character that Stenberg is playing in that moment is not Mae, but a character named Osha. Likely confirming the rumors and speculation that Amandla Stenberg is playing twin sisters in the series, one that followed the path of the darkside (Mae) and one that followed the path of good (Osha).
TV spots and trailers have shown Sol (Jung-Jae) hunting for a Jedi killer and he believes that the killer was once his student and due to this, he believes he should burden the responsibility of reprimanding her. We see flashbacks of a young Stenberg (presumably Osha) and Sol, with the latter giving the girl a lightsaber and the two running through woods that are on fire and a temple of some kind that is burning. It seems that Osha is the student and it’s her corrupted twin, Mae, that is causing trouble for the Jedi. The vast majority of the footage we’ve seen of Stenberg in The Acolyte has been as Mae, the killer, the acolyte, but it’s only in the last two TV spots we’ve had a brief look at Osha.
It’s interesting that Lucasfilm have let slip via subtitles the name of Osha and have only now revealed the character. They have seemingly been keeping the fact that Stenberg plays twins close to their chest and only those looking for it, who’ve been following the rumours, would be looking to connect to dots in any piece of footage and promotional material we get our eyes on. Lucasfilm even changed the synopsis of The Acolyte ahead of the teaser trailer release. The previous synopsis previously mentioned that a Jedi master (Sol) and his former padawan (Osha) would team up to investigate a series of crimes (the Jedi murders) and what they discover is more sinister than what they could have imagined. The new one can be read in full below, but removed any trace of a former master and padawan teaming up for an investigation, just that the series would follow and investigation into a crime spree that would put Sol against a warrior from his past (Mae).
Anyway, it’s good to see the twin rumours pan out and I hope the series can live up to my expectations. Outside of the fandom, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of excitement for the series, especially as The Acolyte is releasing in the packed TV month of June. I’m excited for the series and have quite high hopes given the talent involved. You can read The Acolyte synopsis below and watch the newly released TV spot too.
Set during the High Republic era, The Acolyte, will follow an investigation into a shocking crime spree pits a respected Jedi Master (Lee Jung-jae) against a dangerous warrior from his past (Amandla Stenberg). As more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all is not what it seems.
The Acolyte stars Amandla Stenberg (Bodies, Bodies, Bodies) as the lead, as well as Lee Jung Jae (Squid Game), Dafne Keen (His Dark Materials), Manny Jacinto (The Good Place), Jodie Turner-Smith (After Yang) Charlie Barnett (Russian Doll), Rebecca Henderson (Inventing Anna), Dean Charles Chapman (1917), Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix) and Margarita Levieva (Daredevil: Born Again).
The Acolyte premieres on Disney+ on June 4th with TWO episodes.
