After The Acolyte Appeared To Suffer From Review-Bombing Attempts, A New Star Wars Trend Is Emerging

This week sees the final episode of The Acolyte arrive on Disney+. Amid all the current and upcoming Star Wars movies and series, the show has been a lightning rod of controversy due to external factors. The series seemingly being review bombed by those that have some sort of problem with it and the story being told. However, it seems evident that for everybody who is bad-mouthing the series, there's somebody who loves it and, with that, a new -- and positive -- social media trend has emerged in relation to the show.

At this point, it’s unclear what the future of The Acolyte might be. The show wasn’t promoted as a “limited series” like Obi-Wan Kenobi, so it seems the possibility of additional seasons is there. Nevertheless, the show hasn’t been officially renewed yet. With the first season coming to a close, the push to #RenewTheAcolyte for those who want to see a second season has gone into overdrive. For example, check out the following X post:

Honestly, whether or not we get another season, it’s nice to see the show go viral for a positive reason, as fans celebrate their love for it, rather than the ongoing negativity that was frequently filling social media. The Acolyte’s audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is in the basement compared to the critics' score. And, when you see a delta that significant, it's often the result of review bombing with many, including those that don’t watch the show, posting negative reviews for reasons that aren't related to quality.

And there’s a lot to like about EP Leslye Headland's foray into the galaxy far, far away. The show is set during the High Republic era of Star Wars, making this our first glimpse of that part of the story in live-action. While not everybody has fully embraced new characters, many have. And, yes, some of the fans are seriously into seeing Manny Jacinto with his shirt off, but fandom comes from everywhere:

And not everybody that loves The Acolyte is necessarily focused on the thirst traps. There are also fans who want another season because they want more stories on the characters. As one user put it...

Of course, the question of whether The Acolyte Season 2 will happen is one we can’t really answer. Based on what we know about the viewership, it hasn’t been quite as high as other Star Wars series. Ahsoka's reported numbers were much higher, and a second season of the Rosario Dawson-led show is on the way. Of course, that doesn't mean Acolyte's numbers aren't good enough. Disney+ doesn’t release viewership stats unless it wants to, so that data is mostly a mystery. The other side of the equation, which is the production costs of this latest show, can also only be estimated.

The significant division in the Star Wars fandom over the Amandla Stenberg-led show is actually a fact that's been embraced by some fans. As one put it on Twitter, the show should be renewed as a way to show support for the positive fandom...

In the end, the deciding factor may be how many people watch the final episode. The people who are likely to watch Season 2 are those who finished Season 1. If enough people do that, perhaps Disney will make the call and renew the series.

As far as when the company might do that, there's Disney’s big D23 event coming up in less than a month. We’ll likely get a lot of new information about the future of upcoming Star Wars productions there. Time will tell if a renewal announcement arrives, or if a report of a cancellation comes down sooner.

But, more immediately, be sure to check out the finale of The Acolyte, which will be streamable for Disney+ subscribers on Tuesday, July 16 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Also, check out the 2024 TV schedule to learn about other major shows that are airing right now.