Amandla Stenberg as Osha in her character poster for The Acolyte (2024) next to the poster for Andor season 1 (2022) The Acolyte has been canceled, building a sense of relief that Star Wars’ best TV show made two key choices during production. The cancelation of The Acolyte was as disappointing as it was expected. While some enjoyed the show and were looking forward to the teases of The Acolyte season 2’s story, the show was incredibly divisive among fans and had poor viewership numbers. These two factors contributed to Lucasfilm’s decision not to pick up the show for another outing, ending The Acolyte after only one season.

Not only is this disappointing for the story potential The Acolyte season 2 possessed, but it makes the future of upcoming Star Wars TV shows more uncertain. Aside from Skeleton Crew, Ahsoka season 2, and Andor season 2, there are no other live-action TV shows confirmed by Lucasfilm. While this will certainly change, the cancelation leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Despite this, though, The Acolyte‘s cancelation has highlighted two key decisions by the best of Star Wars’ TV shows which caused great relief.

Andor’s 2 Key Decisions Are Even More Important After The Acolyte’s Cancelation

Andor’s Production Avoided The Possibility Of It Being Canceled

Diego Luna's Cassian Andor looks serious, edited with a concern Mon Mothma (Genevieve O'Reilly), in AndorCustom Image by Yeider Chacon

The TV show in question is, of course, Andor. Andor is counted among the best of Star Wars’ TV efforts and made two key decisions early in production that likely saved it from The Acolyte‘s fate. Originally, Andor was conceived as a five-season plan, each one taking the show’s timeline a year closer to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. However, the showrunners decided to shrink this plan to two seasons, with Andor season 2 having four three-episode arcs that have a year time jump in between each.

Andor season 2 will be released on Disney+ in 2025.

If Andor had continued with the five-season plan, the show would likely not have made it past season 2, maybe even season 1. Andor, despite its overwhelming quality, has low viewership numbers in comparison to Lucasfilm’s other TV shows like The Mandalorian and Ahsoka. Similar low viewership figures caused The Acolyte to be canceled, meaning Andor likely would not have made it even halfway into its five-season plan if it had gone ahead, proving how crucial the decision to reduce it to two seasons truly was.

Andor season 2 entered production not long after season 1 began airing, meaning Lucasfilm essentially did not have the chance to cancel it after the low viewership figures…

The second vital decision Andor made to secure its future was the early production of season 2. Andor season 2 entered production not long after season 1 began airing, meaning Lucasfilm essentially did not have the chance to cancel it after the low viewership figures of season 1 were revealed. Thankfully, these two decisions mean Andor can continue and tell the story that is slowly becoming one of the best Star Wars has ever had.

Andor Is Proof That Low Viewership Does Not Equate To Quality

Cassian flying off Aldhani in Andor. Cassian in prison on Narkina 5 in Andor with his hands to his head. Cassian Andor on a mountain on Aldhani in Andor looking serious over his shoulder. Diego Luna as Cassian Andor in Andor looking concerned Diego Luna as Cassian Andor pointing a blaster gun weapon in Star Wars Andor with a serious look on his face Diego Luna as Cassian Andor looking up at someone in Andor Cassian flying off Aldhani in Andor. Cassian in prison on Narkina 5 in Andor with his hands to his head. Cassian Andor on a mountain on Aldhani in Andor looking serious over his shoulder. Diego Luna as Cassian Andor in Andor looking concerned Diego Luna as Cassian Andor pointing a blaster gun weapon in Star Wars Andor with a serious look on his face Diego Luna as Cassian Andor looking up at someone in Andor

As alluded to, Andor and The Acolyte had similarly weak viewership numbers. More so than anything, the former proves that low exposure does not equate to low quality. Although it is one of the least-watched shows in Star Wars, Andor is highly rated by critics and fans alike. While it is worth noting that The Acolyte is nowhere close to having the same quality as Andor, the show still deserved the chance to continue in an attempt to strive for this; Other Star Wars stories have often had that chance.

It is simply a sad reality that low viewership is what dictates whether stories are told in modern Hollywood…

When comparing Star Wars: The Clone Wars and The Acolyte, the two are similar. Both have a weaker first season with rocky foundations, only the former was allowed to continue and slowly became an integral story in the franchise. The Acolyte was not permitted to continue, nor did it receive this chance to improve, primarily due to low viewing figures. It is simply a sad reality that low viewership is what dictates whether stories are told in modern Hollywood, despite Andor proving above all else that sometimes the projects with the least exposure possess the highest quality.