While The Acolyte has proven surprisingly divisive since launching on Disney+ earlier this month, the tide has somewhat turned following an action-packed episode which saw The Stranger slaughter several Jedi after revealing himself as a Sith (we think).
With three episodes left, there's definitely time to tie up the loose ends and explain how this series fits into the wider Star Wars Galaxy.
Whether The Stranger is a Sith Lord or the Dark Side Force user who founds the Knights of Ren remains to be seen, but The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland has confirmed his backstory will largely remain a mystery to us.
"Because it's Osha's story, you don't know much about the Stranger's background and you're not really going to learn much about it," she confirms. "But there are a bunch of things in episode 6 and episode 8 that are really big clues as to why he is the way he is and why his philosophy is the way that it is."
As for the hopes his or any other character's story will continue in a possible second season, Headland confirmed she didn't write The Acolyte with more episodes in mind and says, "I think there's enough stuff in the last few episodes that you would want to have answered."
Elaborating on that, Headland added:
"I remember reading that Vince Gilligan in writing and doing the first season of Breaking Bad really didn't plan on, 'We're getting seven more seasons, and this is what's going to happen to Walter White.' It was much more, 'Here's everything we got. We're throwing everything at the wall.' And then with the pickup, he mapped out, 'Okay, here's what's going to happen over the course of however many seasons.'"
"So I took that approach with this. I threw everything into season 1, because who knows what's going to happen? And then I'd say there are four to five major mysteries and plot points that have to get hit in season 2, but until we get a proper pickup, I worry that spending a lot of time in that world — especially being in a period where I've worked so long on this project that honestly I'm exhausted by it coming out — to kind of jump right into like, 'All right, season 2...' It will probably be more that I know what needs to happen, and I know what the character development needs to be in order to hit the plot points and the character points for a second, third, or fourth season. So I look forward to working on that, but right now, I haven't."
So, it sounds like the door will be left open to a second season with specific plot points from season 1 which can be expanded on. Whether that will become a reality after the online discourse surrounding the series has largely overshadowed it is tough to say.
All signs point to The Acolyte having been a ratings hit on Disney+, though, so we may well get to see this story continue a few years from now.