Amandla Stenberg shifts the blame of The Acolyte cancelation on the “alt-right” fans despite the low viewership

Amandla Stenberg has finally reacted to the cancelation of The Acolyte after its first season. The Star Wars show did an okay job with the critics but it had a low viewership on Disney+. Stenberg shared that the show’s cancelation did not come as a surprise to her after the “rampage of vitriol” from fans. She shared that the brutal attacks against the show started way before it was even announced.

Amandla Stenberg in The Acolyte | Credits: Disney+/Lucasfilm

While Stenberg blames the show’s axing on “alt-right” groups in the Star Wars fandom, Lucasfilm had little options to continue with the series which had a budget of $180 million. Other cast members like Lee Jung-jae were quite surprised personally at the cancellation of the series.

Amandla Stenberg Blames The Acolyte Cancelation On “Bigotry” From Certain Fans

Amandla Stenberg has now opened up about the cancelation of her show, The Acolyte, on her Instagram story. Stenberg shared that it was not a “huge shock” for her. She shared that the show had been receiving hatred ever since it was just a concept and no one had seen it. Stenberg shared on her Instagram story (via Culture Crave | X):

It’s not a huge shock for me [that it was canceled]. Of course, I live in the bubble of my own reality but for those who aren’t aware there has been a rampage of vitriol that we have faced since the show was even announced… when it was still just a concept and no one had even seen it.

Stenberg shared that she and the cast members had faced attacks from some fans, which she described as “a rampage of hyper-conservative bigotry and vitriol, prejudice, hatred, and hateful language.” She revealed that she had anticipated such an attack given the hatred against the show’s concept. However, it did affect her when it started happening to her.

Stenberg further went on to share that it was an honor and dream to be part of the Star Wars universe. She thanked all the audience members who supported The Acolyte team in the face of the “alt-right” vitriol. She shared that such support made the job worthwhile for her. Amandla Stenberg shared:

It has been an incredible honor and dream for me to be in this universe… And I just want to let those people know out there who supported us in that way, and supported us vocally in the face of all of the vitriol that we received, and the kind of the targeted attack I would say we received by the alt-right, just that you were deeply loved and appreciated, and it made this job all the worthwhile for me.

Stenberg also mentioned the creator of the series, Leslye Headland, who faced most of the criticism against the show. She shared that Headland was one of the best people in the world who was incredibly talented. She shared that she would cherish the experience with the creator forever.

Lucasfilm Had No Choice But To Cancel The Acolyte

Amandla Stenberg and Manny Jacinto in a still from The Acolyte | Credits: Disney+/Lucasfilm

The Acolyte started off to a strong start with the first two episodes generating 4.8M views on its debut (via Deadline). It was the biggest series premiere on Disney+ this year. The series broke into the Nielsen Top 10 originals chart in its premiere week, ranking at No. 7 and climbed to the 6th spot the following week.

However, it dropped out of the Top 10 in week 3 and did not make a comeback until the season finale, ranking at No. 10. The viewership was believed to be the lowest for a Star Wars series finale. It made no sense for Lucasfilm to continue with the $180 million series (via Star Wars News Net) after the record-low viewership.

Before Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae reacted to the cancelation news during an interview with Entertainment Weekly. He shared that Headland was “a great writer and director” and he was “quite surprised personally” about the cancelation. He shared that he was looking forward to watching a second season from her.

The Acolyte is now available for streaming on Disney+.