The Acolyte premiered almost a year ago on Disney+, and, following its cancelation, new data suggests there may be interest in Season 2 after all.
Across June and July 2024, The Acolyte debuted its only season on Disney+, diving into the High Republic era in live-action for the first time. That said, the big-budget Star Wars series instantly split the fandom as it faced backlash for several major reasons and lost viewership week on week.
Despite ending on a cliffhanger that teased Darth Plaeguius's potential role in Season 2, Disney+ was quick to cancel The Acolyte one month later in August.
The Acolyte's Surprising Demand Points to Season 2 Interest
Parrot Analytics tracks the most "in-demand" series by measuring interest, engagement, and viewership across social media, streaming sites, and other sources. This data is represented through a singular figure as the multiple of an individual series' demand against the average show in the U.S.
Seven months after The Acolyte was canceled, Parrot Analytics indicated demand for the High Republic series is still running strong. The series has demand in the U.S. of 20.4 times the market average in the last 30 days - a level held by only 2.7% of shows that Parrot Analytics classes as "outstanding."
Parrot Analytics' demand statistics for other live-action Star Wars Disney+ series - of which The Acolyte ranks higher than more than half - in the last 30 days (as of Monday, March 24) can be seen below:
- Obi-Wan Kenobi - 11.4 times
- The Book of Boba Fett - 11.7 times
- Ahsoka - 13.9 times
- The Acolyte - 20.4 times
- Skeleton Crew - 21.7 times
- The Mandalorian - 26.9 times
Not to mention, data shared by Deadline revealed The Acolyte was Disney+'s second-highest-watched original series last year with 2.7B minutes watched, ranking only behind Percy Jackson and the Olympians' 3B minutes.
As The Acolyte's demand ranks far high than a show like Ahsoka which is returning for Season 2, that would indicate Disney+ should renew the series. Right?
Could The Acolyte Actually Be Saved, One Year Later?
Well, there's also plenty to suggest The Acolyte's cancelation at Disney+ was completely justified and Season 2 may have struggled to capture interest.
Despite Deadline stating it was Disney+'s second-most-watched original in 2024, the outlet noted all of the streamer's franchises "underperformed last year."
Marvel Studios' 2024 shows, Agatha All Along and Echo, notably underperformed compared to the studio's streaming series for previous years. The only other live-action Star Wars series was Skeleton Crew, which didn't start until the end of the year and had several of its episodes spill into 2025.
So, even though The Acolyte performed alright against the competition on Disney+ last year, it did so in a slow year, and on a rather expensive budget.
According to a report from Forbes, The Acolyte came with a hefty price tag for Disney as it landed "over the production budget" with costs hitting over $230 million before post-production was even completed.
But that wasn't even Star Wars' most expensive series as Andor reportedly cost a staggering $250 million, although that show debuted to massive acclaim and will shortly return for Season 2 in April.
As it turns out, this budget played a major role in The Acolyte's cancelation, as Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman told Vulture. He explained that while the studio was "happy with [The Acolyte's] performance," the "cost structure" couldn't justify renewing it for Season 2:
“We were happy with our performance, but it wasn’t where we needed it to be given the cost structure of that title, quite frankly, to go and make a Season 2. So that’s the reason why we didn’t do that.”
In terms of its demand today, while The Acolyte scored above Ahsoka, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, it premiered far more recently than any of them, giving it a big leg-up on the competition.
The series debuted with 11.1 million views in its first five days on streaming and hit Nielsen's Top 10 originals chart in the premiere week at #7. Despite that, the show struggled to maintain momentum and lost its spot in the Top 10 chart in its third week, remaining off the list until returning at #10 for the finale (via Deadline).
Along with the critical backlash on Rotten Tomatoes that landed The Acolyte with 78% from critics and 19% from audiences, the show was "canceled" by fans for its "woke" themes and contradictions to Star Wars canon.
Simply put an expensive budget, viewership struggles, critical backlash, and other divisive elements made it impossible to justify renewing The Acolyte for Season 2, and that situation likely remains unchanged today.
Despite its cancellation, The Acolyte tale will somewhat continue through several books and comics, all of which are prequels to the Disney+ series. That said, as Star Wars continues its High Republic publishing initiative, perhaps its cliffhangers could be resolved in other mediums as the show is unlikely to be saved.
