‘The Acolyte’ takes a parsec-leap forward for queer representation

Where are all the LGBTQ people in Star Wars? They exist, but they’re on the periphery, in video games or comic books, like Juhani in Knights of the Old Republic or Doctor Aphra from the Doctor Aphra comics. The closest we’ve come in the live-action Star Wars universe to queer representation is a same-sex kiss hidden in the background of The Rise of Skywalker. 

Despite plenty of real-world evidence that queer people and queer animals exist all over the globe, there aren’t any queer folk in an entire galaxy? That’s absurd when you realize the live-action canon includes 11 films and six series, including The Acolyte. Mercifully, this latest Disney+ series is finally giving space to queer people in the Star Wars universe. 

Episode 3 of the Acolyte is more than token representation. It’s the compelling story of a family of faith that conflicts with the Jedi way of life, leading us to question the motives of the typically magnanimous Jedi Order.

Credit: Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM

Planet Brendok is a sapphic paradise

Episode 3 ushers audiences into the mysterious past of twins Mae and Osha (both played by Amandla Stenberg). Flashing back 16 years to their planet of Brendok, this episode, directed by Kogonada (After Yang), reveals their origin story, including a look at the fiery tragedy that defined both their lives, and particularly why Mae is hellbent on killing four Master Jedi.

At the start, there’s a sense of serenity on Planet Brendok. Young Mae and Osha frolic through a vast, lush forest; the bond between sisters is immediately apparent. It’s not long before an exciting reveal: the twins have two moms, Mother Aniseya (Jodi Turner-Smith) and Mother Koril (Margarita Levieva). Wisely, this isn’t treated like a grand reveal, but matter-of-factly in this matriarchal society. Still, the lack of any grandness around this detail is most welcome, as Disney likes to make a big fuss over things that just wind up being a disappointment (remember LeFou, Disney’s “first openly gay character” in the live-action Beauty and the Beast?). 

Aniseya and Koril belong to a coven of witches, a group of women familiar with the ways of the Force but excluded from Jedi life. The reasons aren’t clear yet. But it’s evident that the coven, led by Aniseya, greatly values their own traditions, and purposely avoids the Jedi, preferring to live fruitfully off grid. A potent joy infuses these early coven scenes, showing Mae and Osha live in a warm and happy community. Kogonada brings a comforting reverence to these family scenes with a warm, inviting color palette. But with that joy is an underlying fear – both Aniseya and Koril are fearful of their children getting too far out of their sight. What could possibly concern them on such a lovely planet?

The surprising answer? The Jedi. Because both Mae and Osha have the ability to use the Force, the galactic mandate requires them to be trained as Jedi. Their mothers have no intention of letting this happen. The coven has their own methods of of engaging with the Force. And Aniseya is particularly interested in teaching her children how strong they can be when they work together, unlike the typically solitary Jedi.

Credit: Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM

Queerness as a metaphor on Planet Brendok

The mothers parent their daughters with a gentle yet firm hand, leading with love but acknowledging that they’re different as they’re part of an all-women community. As a family, they embrace that difference is something to celebrate, not fear. While they are loving, they recognize the rest of the world doesn’t feel the same way: “The galaxy is not a place that welcomes women like us,” Aniseya tells her daughters, justifying why they live a happy, if hidden life, away from the hubbub of the Jedi authority. 

This line from Aniseya, and the episode as a whole, speaks to the experience of some queer people in contemporary society. The increased visibility of queer people around the world comes with a seemingly inevitable backlash in the way of bigotry, hate crimes, and homophobic and transphobic legislation.  This is reflected in The Acolyte: On Brendok, Aniseya and Koril can love and parent as they see fit within a community that embraces and respects them. But the intruding Jedi question their faith, their customs, and even their right to care for their own children. 

Jedi Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae), who begins the episode by lurking in the forest and spying on the twins, immediately asks the coven “Where’s their father?”, enforcing the heteronormative structure of the Jedi. 

“They have no father,” Aniseya snarls back with pride. The coven is in an impossible situation: fighting the Jedi means certain death, but giving the children over to the Jedi means losing them forever. 

The Jedi are determined to take Osha and Mae from their home to raise them as Jedi. They arrive at a pivotal time for the girls, who are completing a swearing-in ceremony to confirm their commitment to the coven. While Mae is excited and accepts the ritual with open arms, Osha is hesitant, longing for a life beyond the confines of her community. She dreams of being a Jedi. 

This too, is a relatable queer experience – the yearning for a bigger, more exciting life where you can be accepted and embraced for who you truly are. While Osha’s mothers understand her desire to explore the galaxy, their caution comes from lived experience: They understand just how cruel the wider world can be for those who are different.

Credit: Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM

Episode 3 of The Acolyte changes our perception of the Jedi

While the Force has long had an established Dark Side, the Jedi Order is responsible for maintaining a stable and prosperous universe, and has been a source of good in the world since the very beginning. 

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen The Jedi Order act seemingly out of character. In Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Ashoka (who also has her own Disney+ series) was trained in the way of the Jedi. But when she was framed for a crime she didn’t commit, she was put on trial and expelled from the Jedi Order. Though she was eventually acquitted, the incident shattered her illusion of the Order’s righteousness and she no longer saw it as a force for good. After Ahsoka was offered her place back in the Jedi Order, she left to start a life of her own.

While Ahsoka’s incident was largely painted as a case of a few bad people infiltrating an otherwise great organization, The Acolyte takes things further by suggesting that the entire Jedi Order is capable of making disastrous decisions. Jedi are often fueled by the belief that what they’re doing is inherently righteous and for the greater good. An innate belief that your intentions are noble is great in theory, but there’s a hubris that blinds you from seeing the whole picture. 

That’s precisely what we encounter when the four Master Jedi come to Brendok to take Mae and Osha from everything they know. The Jedi say that the twins must be trained in the way of the Jedi, as living among the coven is not the way they should be raised. There is, however, no actual justification for why this is, besides the law. The coven is their family. It’s everything they know, and Mae does not want to be anywhere near the Jedi. But this doesn’t seem to matter to them. Their faith in their Order instills in them that being a Jedi is the best way – even the only way – to properly use the Force. They’ve accepted that fact blindly, disregarding the fallout for families — and whole communities — torn apart by their influence.  

The Acolyte is a bold new direction in Star Wars storytelling, building on previous suggestions in the prequel trilogy that the Jedi Order is out of touch, and in the Clone Wars that the Order can be downright malicious. Acolyte reckons with a bold idea that perhaps the Jedi aren’t always the heroes we thought they were. Using queerness to explore the nuances of good and evil and the Jedi cause only makes it more terrifying — and more impactful.

The Acolyte is now streaming on Disney+, with a new episode every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET.