Zooming towards its official June 4 release date, Disney+'s newest "Star Wars" live-action series "The Acolyte" will be a true test for the 47-year-old franchise during a temporary lull in big screen space opera action from that galaxy far, far away.
"The Acolyte" and its 8-episode first season will roll out as a product of The High Republic era in the "Star Wars" timeline, a period of growing unrest when the fabled Jedi Knights reigned supreme some 100 years prior to the events of "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" and the entire Skywalker Saga.
A new official clip has just surfaced from Disney+ showcasing the series' "The Matrix"-like martial arts fight choreography in an intense physical sequence between a mysterious trainee named Mae (Amandla Stenberg) and Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) that's conspicuously lacking the use of crackling lightsabers.
Related: Everything we know about 'The Acolyte': Release date, plot, cast & more
Here's the full series description:
"In 'The Acolyte,' an investigation into a shocking crime spree pits a respected Jedi Master against a dangerous warrior from his past. As more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all is not what it seems…."
Truth be told, this new look at "The Acolyte's" acrobatic hand-to-hand combat style is semi-refreshing for the "Star Wars" realm, but it's certainly been seen before in a multitude of martial arts movies such as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" or the "Ip Man" films and doesn't exactly set the universe on fire.
It does benefit from its veteran action coordinator, Chris Clark Cowan, whose dynamic work has been seen in "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" and "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings."
Besides Stenberg and Jung-jae, "The Acolyte" co-stars Manny Jacinto (Qimir), Carrie-Anne Moss (Master Indara), Dean-Charles Chapman (Master Torbin), Joonas Suotamo (Jedi Master Kelnacca), Jodie Turner-Smith (Mother Aniseya), Charlie Barnett (Yord Fandar), Dafne Keen (Jedi Padawan Jecki Lon), and Rebecca Henderson (Vernestra Rwoh).
Series creator and showrunner Leslye Headland directed the pilot episode and also executive produces in collaboration with Kathleen Kennedy, Simon Emanuel, Jeff F. King, and Jason Micallef.
The first two episodes of "The Acolyte" will release exclusively on Disney+ starting June 4, 2024 with additional installments arriving weekly.
