Lee Jung-Jae Joins Star Wars Series ‘The Acolyte’
by Erik Amaya
After a seemingly dormant period, Lucasfilm’s The Acolyte is switching into high gear with fast-and-furious casting news.
Deadline reports Squid Game‘s Lee Jung-Jae has joined the series as its male lead. First announced at the 2020 Disney Investor Day, the Star Wars series from Russian Doll‘s Leslye Headland takes place during the waning days of the High Republic — a century or so before the Galactic Civil War — and sees someone learning of the Dark Side just as the Jedi Order begins its slow decline into complacency. Amandla Steinberg has been set to star for some time with Jodi Smith-Turner recently joining the production.
The Acolyte was one of ten Star Wars projects announced at the 2020 Investor Day. Others included a miniseries centered on Lando Calrissian, an animated feature with R2D2 and C-3PO, a since-abandoned Ranged of the New Republic series, and a live action Ahoska with Rosario Dawson in the title role. Thanks to the rigors of the development and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, most of the projects have moved at a glacial pace, so it is heartening to see The Acolyte remain a priority as it will be the first Star Wars series to take place outside of the Skywalker Saga.
It is, of course, unclear when the series will finally stream, but a flurry of casting news usually comes just before a project moves into production, so it is possible the program will take a late 2023 or early 2024 spot on Disney+.
