Moreover, The Acolyte’s showrunner Leslye Headland constantly teased a second season in interviews, and multiple references were made by the franchise itself to ‘The Acolyte season 1,’ suggesting season 2 was coming. In truth, The Acolyte wasn’t commonly considered one of Star Wars’ best TV shows, but it was nevertheless a surprise that Star Wars confirmed the show is not returning for a second season. Now, the future of Star Wars TV shows seems unclear.
Lucasfilm Has Been Reducing Its TV Output
Star Wars has put out some truly brilliant TV shows in recent years. While The Book of Boba Fett was not largely well-received, The Mandalorian and Andor have both become beloved in the franchise, and Ahsoka and Obi-Wan Kenobi both had significant fanfare around them. In fact, Ahsoka and Obi-Wan Kenobi were particularly exciting for Star Wars audiences because they saw the return of Anakin Skywalker actor Hayden Christensen and Obi-Wan Kenobi actor Ewan McGregor to the Star Wars screen.
Nevertheless, Lucasfilm’s TV show output certainly seems to be slowing. This year, the franchise will only release two live-action TV shows: The Acolyte and Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Clearly, The Acolyte was met with mixed reactions, to say the least. Now, Skeleton Crew is next in line, and it is unclear how the show will perform. The Skeleton Crew trailer shows some promise, with brand-new characters and a unique coming-of-age storyline featuring a mysterious Jedi, yet some are already voicing their concerns.
Next Year Looks Even Worse For Star Wars’ Live-Action Shows
In 2025, Andor season 2 is the only confirmed live-action TV show release among Star Wars’ upcoming TV shows. Ahsoka season 2 is also confirmed to be in the works, but its release date is currently unknown. With The Acolyte not being renewed for a second season, and The Mandalorian season 4 still being a question mark, it isn’t clear what will be coming next for Star Wars’ live-action TV shows following Andor and Ahsoka.
In 2025, Andor season 2 is the only confirmed live-action TV show release.
Presumably, Lucasfilm could have any number of projects in the works, but if there are live-action TV shows that haven’t yet been announced, a 2025 release date seems rather unlikely. If another live-action TV show was going to be released in 2025, it would need to start filming very soon. This may prove particularly problematic for Star Wars’ next year, as Andor season 2 is expected to premiere earlier in the year. This could mean a very quiet 2025 for Star Wars TV shows.
Star Wars Animation Hasn’t Broken Any News Either
Of course, live-action TV shows aren’t the only possibilities for Star Wars’ upcoming TV shows. Animated TV shows have proven extremely popular in the franchise; Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, and Star Wars: The Bad Batch have all been clear proof of that. However, each of those shows is confirmed to have concluded, and Star Wars has not announced another new animated TV show yet.
There are a few new and upcoming animated Star Wars shows, but they are not exactly the types of Star Wars shows to draw major attention. Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures season 2 only just recently dropped, although that is targeted to a significantly younger audience. LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy is also coming next month, but that is a non-canon four-part miniseries that, again, is a far cry from the likes of Rebels and The Bad Batch.
Outside those two projects, it is unclear what is coming down the line for animated Star Wars shows. This is particularly surprising, given the projects that have been anticipated. In fact, with Asajj Ventress’ return in The Bad Batch season 3 came the announcement that Ventress would return in an upcoming Star Wars project. Because Ventress has only appeared in animation, many assumed that this would mean a new animated TV show—perhaps even one leading Ventress. However, no such announcement has been made thus far.
After D23, We Really Shouldn’t Have So Many Star Wars Questions
Following The Acolyte’s finale, it was clear that Star Wars was hitting a bit of a slow period. Again, although smaller releases such as Young Jedi Adventures and Rebuild the Galaxy were coming, the franchise seemed set to reveal something much more significant, and D23 2024 seemed like the perfect setting for a massive announcement. Shockingly, very little Star Wars news was revealed at D23 this year.
The biggest Star Wars reveal at D23 was the first trailer for Skeleton Crew, which had long been expected. In truth, nothing brand-new or all that surprising was announced, which seemed like a massive missed opportunity for the franchise. Unfortunately, this could mean that Star Wars isn’t sure what it is going to do next, at least with TV shows.
The Mandalorian & Grogu movie and Rey’s new Star Wars movie, rumored to be titled Star Wars: New Jedi Order, are confirmed to be coming, and there are a number of other upcoming Star Wars movies that are anticipated. However, in terms of shows, it really is only Andor season 2 and Ahsoka season 2 at this point. This really could mean that Lucasfilm is considering seriously diminishing Star Wars TV shows, especially live-action TV shows.
Star Wars TV shows have been an incredible addition to the franchise.
While some might be cheering The Acolyte cancelation, this isn’t good news for the franchise or the fanbase. For one, it’s a bit odd to be thrilled that a franchise is putting out less content. For another, Star Wars TV shows have been an incredible addition to the franchise. Some of Star Wars’ most beloved characters, from Ahsoka to Din Djarin and Grogu, wouldn’t exist without Star Wars shows. If Lucasfilm starts to pull back on shows, there will be so many missed opportunities, and new Star Wars releases will be much fewer and much further between.
Perhaps Lucasfilm does have a number of Star Wars shows, animated and otherwise, lined up that simply haven’t been announced yet. They could be holding off until Star Wars Celebration 2025. However, it’s looking more and more like Star Wars may be pulling back on live-action TV shows, in which case, The Acolyte’s cancelation may just be the tip of the iceberg.
