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Disney May Lose Another ‘Star Wars’ Series as New Information Comes To Light

2024 proved to be a challenging year for Lucasfilm, with The Acolyte’s divisive reception and Skeleton Crew struggling to find its footing amid high expectations. Despite the setbacks, fans continue to hold out hope for the future of the galaxy far, far away.

Qimir/The Stranger wielding lightsabers in 'The Acolyte'

In June 2024, The Acolyte premiered on Disney+, promising a fresh take on the Star Wars universe. Set in the waning days of the High Republic, the series, led by creator Leslye Headland, explored the rise of the Sith during the Jedi’s Golden Age. Featuring a diverse cast, the show aimed to break new ground.

The ambitious project, however, sparked controversy. While some celebrated its inclusive approach, others criticized it as being part of Disney’s so-called “diversity agenda,” with detractors labeling it “woke.” The polarized reaction overshadowed key story elements, including teases of Darth Plagueis and Yoda’s involvement in the Brendok disaster.

Ultimately, The Acolyte struggled to capture a wide audience. Following its nine-episode run, Disney canceled the series, citing disappointing viewership.

Osha bleeding a lightsaber kyber crystal from blue to red in 'The Acolyte'

“We were happy with our performance, but it wasn’t where we needed it to be given the cost structure of that title,” said Disney Entertainment co-chair Alan Bergman in an interview with Vulture.

For now, fans can still stream the show, but with Disney+’s history of removing underperforming titles like Willow, its future on the platform remains uncertain.

Meanwhile, all eyes turned to Skeleton Crew. Premiering on December 2, 2024, with its finale airing on January 14, 2025, the series presented a coming-of-age adventure in the Star Wars galaxy. Created by Jon Watts and Christopher Ford, the show followed four children thrust into a galactic journey under the guidance of Jude Law’s mysterious Force-user, Jod Na Nawood.

Jude Law as a mysterious Jedi with various children out of focus in the background in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew

Set within the timeline of The Mandalorian and Ahsoka, Skeleton Crew received praise for its Amblin-inspired tone. However, the series faced an uphill battle in attracting viewers. Forbes reported that its double-episode debut failed to crack Luminate’s top 10 streaming list—a concerning start for a show with a $136 million budget.

Skeleton Crew is in process now, so we’ll see,” Bergman said. “The reviews have been excellent… we’ll see how that all plays out as it moves forward.”

Yet, the numbers tell a sobering story. Nielsen data revealed that the series premiere garnered only 382 million minutes viewed—far below The Mandalorian Season 3’s nearly 900 million and Obi-Wan Kenobi’s billion-plus launch.

L-R: Jedi Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae, Qimir/The Stranger (Manny Jacinto), and Osha Aniseya (Amandla Stenberg)

According to GameRant: “This is roughly 20% lower than the ratings for Star Wars: The Acolyte’s premiere week, the previous record holder for the lowest viewership of any Star Wars series debut. [Star Wars: Skeleton Crew] also became the first series in the franchise to fail to debut in Disney+’s Top 10 Originals.”

Despite the lackluster debut, creator Jon Watts remains optimistic about continuing the story. Speaking with Collider, Watts shared plans for a potential second season:

“We 100% have an idea for a second season and know what we would do. We have a built-in ticking clock of the kids and their age, and by the time we would get production going, we know what age they would be. So, we would be writing towards that. You’ll be growing up with the kids.”

The Mandalorian and Grogu in the cockpit

Watts even teased a time jump, adding: “It would be something like [a three to four-year time jump] to make sense. We haven’t seen the kids in a while, so it just depends on how tall the kids are. But we wouldn’t do like a Stranger Things thing where we’re like, ‘It’s the next day,’ because it won’t be.”

Looking ahead, Lucasfilm’s lineup feels uncertain. Fans await The Mandalorian’s return in a 2026 theatrical film and continue speculating about Dave Filoni’s crossover project. Meanwhile, delays and canceled projects, including Taika Waititi’s shelved film and the possible revival of Rogue Squadron, leave the franchise at a crossroads.

Lucasfilm’s ability to reignite the Star Wars magic is more crucial than ever. Will Skeleton Crew pave the way for a brighter future, or is another disappointment on the horizon?

What’s your take on Lucasfilm’s plans? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Thomas Hitchen

When he’s not thinking about the Magic Kingdom, Thomas is usually reading a book, becoming desperately obsessed with fictional characters, or baking something delicious (his favorite is chocolate cake -- to bake and to eat). He's a dreamer and grew up on Mulan saving the world, Jim Hawkins soaring through the stars, and Padmé Amidala fighting a Nexu. At the Parks, he loves to ride Everest, stroll down Main Street with an overstuffed pin lanyard around his neck, and eat as many Mickey-shaped ice creams as possible. His favorite character is Han Solo (yes, he did shoot first), and his… More »

20 Comments

  1. Thus shirts has worse numbers than The Acolyte and Asohka, and season 3 of the Mandalorian. Spent all that money for another failure that no one wanted to see.

    1. At least read your comments before you post it, bud. I’m still trying to figure out what you’re trying to say.

      Skeleton Crew has been a fantastic breath of fresh air. I would love to see a 2nd season!

  2. I really hope that they don’t cancel star wars skeleton crew because I really like the show a lot because I’m a big fan of star wars for years and i just hope they renew it for season two of star wars skeleton crew.

  3. I was extremely upset when they canceled The Acolyte. So many people said terrible things about it online. While the people that really loved it got screwed because of so many negative people that don’t know what they are talking about. So, I really hope they don’t cancel The Skeleton Crew. I haven’t watched it yet. BUT, I will be watching it now that I have a couple days off from work. Hopefully that’s helps their viewing numbers.

    1. I watched EVERY episode of the Acolyte so my critique is well informed.

      The show was ABSOLUTELY TERRIBLE and mid way through the first episode I could tell and I told myself, I’m gonna finish this just to see how it gets.

      It DIDN’T get better and no wonder people tuned out.

  4. Both shows have me waiting excitedly to see what will happen next. Love them both. Not sure what woke has to do with anything though.

  5. Disney has failed at Star Wars. the numbers show this. until an entire new leadership is put in place, there is no reason to believe anything worth watching will come from Disney.

    as far as the woke agenda killing Acolyete, even Grace Randolph, a DEI sympathizer said the show was so bad she couldn’t recommend ti from just and entertainment perspective. You have to consider it did hurt the show though given Disney’s track record. Disney has made it very clear where they stand on those issues and their desire to put it into everything. even after flop after flop they still try. I think for many, the show was a symbol of Disney digging in their feet and ignoring fans.

    The Old Republic story line has a very popular following among pretty much among all fans and it doesn’t have any connection to the originals except that it’s in the same universe. and no one considers it woke. no one complains about lore breaking. it’s just fantastic. Disney should stay FAR away from this since they destroy everything they touch.

    Defenders of the show want to say that fans said mean things about the show, but Disney also attacked the fans, it goes both ways. do you really think fans are going to return after that?

  6. I don’t have a strong opinion of SC. It is entertaining, but I can’t seem to get into and care about it.

    Cancel it, don’t cancel it.

  7. The Acolyte had a couple good episodes – but also had a lot of pointless episodes that really didn’t progress the story, and made for a boring ride.

    On the other hand, Skeleton Crew was a lot of fun. I hate weekly releases on streaming (made sense on cable, but not for streaming services), so didn’t even start watching it until last week so I would be ready to watch the finale the day it came out. It was a refreshing story, not bogged down with working around known characters – yet still very much felt a part of the SW galaxy. I hope they make a second season.

  8. Disney knows exactly what to do to get the audience back, but they refuse to do so! They’ve chosen to die on their DEI “modern audience” hill & that’s exactly what we’re seeing! This time no one said much about the show so they couldn’t blame bigotry or make up lies, people took the shills advice to not watch & let them “enjoy” it! No excuses this time! They can either do what they know will bring people back or go extinct! No one cares anymore!

  9. Say what you want about injecting politics, the real problem for Disney Star Wars and Marvel is that the writing has gotten so bad and the continuity is constantly being shattered. It is to obvious how few people involved love the franchises, or are even familiar with them.

  10. For me ,The Acolyte was just okay. I had trouble remembering which twin was which.

    Skeleton Crew I really enjoyed. It was similar to The Goonies and Stranger Things in that it focused on kids acting like kids in a grown-up world. What kid wouldn’t want to find a space ship and fly away on an adventure? I really hope we get another season of this show.

  11. I’m a die hard Star Wars fan and have been since I was a little kid. I’ve watched just about everything and anything about it. I liked the Acolyte. It was a fresh look that the Star Wars franchise needed. Even though it was a little slow at times and needed a little refinement. It was a much needed story ark. As far as SC it’s bringing a new element that Rebels did when It debuted. This series deserves a second season with longer episodes. Unlike The Acolyte it seemed rushed. I’m onboard with both having 2nd seasons.

  12. Disney should probably give Lucas film back to George Lucas and call it a day The Acolyte was awful and Skeleton crew probably deserves the same fate and be cancelled.

  13. Disney-

    I’m a lifelong Disney freak/fan/ affectionado. Just finished watching your new series for young, hopeful fans–Skeleton Crew. And it’s great.
    But you’ve let the business/Wall street folks destroy you from within. You morons no longer deserve of our support. Folks like me who love Disney….they don’t love the Disney of today. They love the Disney of yesteryear. The Disney of their youth. We love our memories and watch saddled by nostalgia.
    You idiots spend literally hundreds of millions on your content and then shred the presentation running randomly timed commercials with maddening frequency, pushing esoteric pharmaceuticals utterly irrelevant the the target audience and 99.9% of their parents. It’s so damned thick and idiotic, your outstanding show was abandoned by all the kids I know who wandered off in irritation during your endless commercials to watch youtube. Wake up! Top to bottom, parks to streaming, your desperate drive to squeeze pennies from stones has rotted you. It saddens me deeply.

  14. I loved The Acolyte.

    I loved She-Hulk.

    I haven’t watched Skeleton Crew and am unlikely to because I’m tired of getting jerked around by Disney.

    I understand Disney is in it for the money and that’s OK, but their double standard is evident so they can just continue on without me. It’s not the story they support.

  15. Real person posting:
    LOVED Skeleton Crew. I got to watch with my young children. We gathered up on the couch and watched together every week. I’m not exaggerating to say that I’m THANKFUL for family content to watch. We had a blast! The story, performances and execution were engaging enough for the adults and yet simple enough for my 4 y.o. to summarize the dramatic pivot of the final episode to us. (He blew me away, to be frank.)

    My family enjoyed Skeleton Crew so much! I’m bummed that Season 1 is complete, we all wanted more. Can’t wait to see those kids again… and Jod, that unfortunate scoundrel, he couldn’t pull the trigger. He’s another redemption arc in process. And his last scene – that half smile – I want to know what he’s planning!

    Readers, Skeleton Crew is good family content. I won’t show my kids The Acolyte, it’s too dark and not age appropriate. But one day when they watch it I’ll let them decide if they like the show or not. Personally, it was a miss for me, but there were some beautiful moments that I can’t forget.

    Regardless, John and Dave have the pulse of Star Wars. Looking forward to what they have coming next.

    FAVREAU/FILONI 2026!

  16. I thought skeleton crew was a solid show. I hope we get more.

    Acolyte had some writing issues but it wasn’t insurmountable (not the right time period for the story they wanted to tell felt more old republic golden age when they sith were presumed dead and gone).

    Attacking fans has been Disney’s go to reaction since their sequel debacle. (That isn’t to say that their creations haven’t had spectacle but with poor character archs and incoherent plot…. the majority of people won’t like it)

    All in all great shows both skeleton crew and the acolyte had great acting. Skeleton crew also had great writing. (Acolyte less so the plot and the dialogue at times are really bad). Personally, I’d pull a stranger things move re-record the bad lines and cut Yoda and dark lord cameo (doesn’t add anything).

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