United Kingdom tax documents filed by the Walt Disney Company’s UK branch reveal that Lucasfilm and The Walt Disney Company spent over 172 million GBP (231 million USD) on the production of The Acolyte, a prequel series set in the Disney Star Wars universe.

Annual Report and Financial Statement of Full Accounts “Blue Stockings UK Limited”

In an interview with Vanity Fair, The Acolyte series creator Leslye Headland publicly claimed the show cost “180 million,” which was assumed by several to be stated in US dollars. It is evident that if Headland had knowledge of the series financials that she was more likely referring the the amount in Great British Pounds. Accounting for exchange rates at the time of this article, this means that The Acolyte cost almost $230 million US dollars.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 23: (L-R) Alan Bergman, Co-Chairman, Disney Entertainment, Kathleen Kennedy, President, Lucasfilm, Leslye Headland and Asad Ayaz, Chief Brand Officer, The Walt Disney Company and President, Marketing, The Walt Disney Studios and Disney attend the launch event for Lucasfilm’s new Star Wars series The Acolyte at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California on May 23, 2024. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)

With 8 episodes in the series, this means that Lucasfilm under Kathleen Kennedy allowed the budget of the now-cancelled show to balloon to $28.75 million per episode, also while failing to attract an audience. UK tax filings for The Acolyte only account for what was spent on the series before September 24, 2023, so it is possible that this figure might be adjusted as additional tax filings surface. The show was released in June 4, 2024 and failed to register on the Nielsen Top 10 Overall chart and only appeared on the Nielsen Top 10 Original Streaming chart at 488 million watch minutes before dropping off the charts altogether in the shows 4th week.

The show did manage to reappear on the Nielsen Top 10 Original Streaming chart by July 16 when the finale aired, garnering 335 million watch minutes before ultimately being cancelled by the Walt Disney Company.

(L-R): Vernestra Rwoh (Rebecca Henderson) and Mog Adana (Harry Trevaldwyn) in Lucasfilm’s THE ACOLYTE, season one, exclusively on Disney+. ©2024 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.

Kathleen Kennedy championed The Acolyte and Leslye Headland in the same New York Times piece that obfuscated the astronomical spending Kennedy approved for the Star Wars flop. Kennedy said, “My belief is that storytelling does need to be representative of all people. That’s an easy decision for me.”

She continued, “Operating within these giant franchises now, with social media and the level of expectation — it’s terrifying. I think Leslye has struggled a little bit with it. I think a lot of the women who step into ‘Star Wars’ struggle with this a bit more. Because of the fan base being so male dominated, they sometimes get attacked in ways that can be quite personal.”

 

Leslye Headland would later state that if The Acolyte failed, it would be her fault. However, The Acolyte is just another big-budget Lucasfilm project that fails to justify the exorbitant spending that Walt Disney Company. Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger continues to turn a blind eye to the out-of-control creative budgets. According to UK tax filings, Lucasfilm has already spent at least $362 million USD making Andor, a show that very few watched but many see as the best of Disney+ Star Wars. Outside of Star Wars, Kathleen Kennedy spent almost $170 million making a Willow reboot for Disney+, only for Bob Iger to wipe the show from existence and take the expense as a complete loss for tax purpose. As of the writing of this article there are no legal commercial options to purchase or view Willow.