With The Acolyte, Lucasfilm was gearing up to explore new avenues for the Star Wars franchise to head in. The Acolyte marked the first live-action Star Wars project to take place before the events of The Phantom Menace. This meant the franchise could finally grow beyond the Skywalker Saga, which comprised most of the prior stories. With its High Republic setting, The Acolyte would dive into new corners of the Star Wars galaxy and make it as fresh as ever.

The Acolyte‘s finished project was able to accomplish this with a collection of brand-new characters, concepts, and environments. From a story perspective, The Acolyte proved Star Wars can operate outside the Skywalker Saga. Yet, Disney decided against another season of The Acolyte, despite plans for more. The Acolyte is now part of a group of other Star Wars shows like The Book of Boba Fett, Skeleton Crew, and Obi-Wan Kenobi with only single seasons to their name, but here’s why the controversial Star Wars series set during the High Republic could make a comeback.

The Acolyte’s Viewership Remains Strong

• The Acolyte premiered to 4.8 million views on Disney+ and 11.1 million in its first five days.
• The High Republic-set series was also one of the most expensive Star Wars shows, with a budget of $230 million.

When The Acolyte debuted with a pair of episodes last June, the series got off to a strong start with its viewership, but that eventually faltered. Part of The Acolyte‘s drop in ratings was due to the nonsensical outrage against the series for having a diverse cast. However, in the months following The Acolyte‘s initial run, viewership for the Star Wars series has been stronger than some might’ve expected.

“We were happy with our performance, but it wasn’t where we needed it to be given the cost structure of that title, quite frankly, to go and make a Season 2. So that’s the reason why we didn’t do that.” — Co-chairman of Disney Entertainment Alan Bergman explains The Acolyte’s cancellation.

According to Parrott Analytics, “the audience demand for The Acolyte is 20.4 times the demand of the average TV series in the United States in the last 30 days. 2.7% of all shows in this market have this level of demand.” So, despite Disney not renewing The Acolyte for more seasons, viewers continue to check out the series on Disney+. In December, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment Alan Bergman was on record for saying the performance made the streamer happy, but it wasn’t enough due to The Acolyte‘s costly budget. The Acolyte might be a one-and-done series, but there’s no denying audiences are still interested in the title, and that could be enough to see more in the future.

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Lucasfilm Brought Back Star Wars: The Clone Wars

• Lucasfilm surprised fans in 2018 and brought back The Clone Wars for a final season.
• The Acolyte could similarly return to Disney+ as the beloved animated series.

Looking at Star Wars‘ past, it’s easy to see a path where The Acolyte could continue. When Disney acquired Lucasfilm, the groundbreaking Clone Wars series was lost in the shuffle early on. The show’s sixth season premiered on Netflix, and many believed that was the end. Lucasfilm moved forward with a new animated series, and The Clone Wars was left in the past. Some unfinished Clone Wars arcs hit StarWars.com, and Dark Disciple adapted an unproduced arc. Then, years later, Lucasfilm surprised fans at the San Diego Comic-Con in 2018 with the announcement that The Clone Wars would receive the closure it deserved.

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Star Wars returns are part of its DNA, and that’s further illustrated by the announcement of the sequel trilogy back in 2012 as well. Therefore, it would be no surprise if The Acolyte was able to generate enough fan support to see a return to Disney+ down the road. The Acolyte creator Leslye Headland previously shared that there were plans for the story to continue in what could’ve lasted several more seasons. Star Wars shows have returned in surprising ways in the past, with The Clone Wars being the key example of that. The Acolyte could easily follow in its footsteps shortly with the precedent already set.

Lucasfilm Could Continue The Acolyte with Other Avenues

It seems the primary reason why The Acolyte didn’t receive another season was largely due to its budget. Like Andor, The Acolyte filmed more of the series on location and didn’t rely on the StageCraft technology used for other Star Wars series like The Mandalorian and Ahsoka. If Lucasfilm needs to produce The Acolyte at a lower price point for it to continue, then the series could rely more on technology for the season. Shows like Skeleton Crew proved StageCraft can look just as cinematic as on-location filming if it’s shot properly. Looking at the upcoming slate of live-action Star Wars series, it’s clear Lucasfilm planned for The Acolyte to continue, and with a lower budget, that can become a reality with a change behind the scenes.

“I am really excited about the prospect of the Mae-Vernestra relationship. I really love the idea that Vernestra now has on her hands a Force-sensitive, powerful woman that is, at this point, docile enough that Vernestra would be able to educate and form an allegiance with. So that was very exciting to me to set up. Osha and the Stranger is probably the juiciest relationship that I would love to dive into. There’s so much about them that I would love to explore more and not just the hand-holding,” — The Acolyte showrunner Leslyte Headland teasing a potential second season.

However, if a continuation on Disney+ is completely off the table, then there are still other avenues for The Acolyte to survive. Star Wars is a multimedia franchise with a strong following in its publishing corner. The Acolyte stems from The High Republic publishing initiative that will come to an end this summer. The Acolyte: Wayseeker, hitting store shelves in May, will follow Vernestra Rwoh and Indara before the events of the series, and that could be the starting point for more books and comics to continue other story threads in the future.

The Acolyte‘s first season wasn’t perfect, but there were still more than enough quality pieces for the story to continue. The season finale teased Darth Plagueis, a character who Star Wars fans have been wanting to see in canon for years, and the arrival of Yoda. The series was one of the most ambitious entries from Lucasfilm to date and it’s an important project to keep alive in Star Wars because it pushed the franchise forward, even if it took place in the past.

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Unlike other franchises, there are plenty of ways Lucasfilm can revive The Acolyte, with evidence suggesting there is still an appetite for the Star Wars series. Since The Acolyte‘s massive budget was a major issue for the first season, Lucasfilm can bring the budget of the series down by using the StageCraft technology that has kept other shows like The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan Kenobi under $200 million. Numerous opportunities in publishing would serve as less costly options for Lucasfilm. The Acolyte might not have received a renewal from Disney to continue just yet, but history shows Star Wars projects can come back in the most surprising ways. Not every story deserves more, but The Acolyte had a solid first season, and making another could do far more good for Star Wars than Lucasfilm realizes.