Apparently, Star Wars: The Acolyte featured some non-fans in its writers' room. At least according to the series' creator, Leslye Headland.
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Headland discussed her onboarding onto the project. She confessed that she loves Star Wars and “absolutely adore[s] it.” The same cannot be said for all of those whom she collaborated with. Headland was asked about the writer in her writers' room who wasn't a fan and defended the decision.
“Yeah, I just thought it would be good to have the perspective of a person that had literally never seen Star Wars until she was in the room,” Headland explained. “And she said to, ‘Why do you want me in this room? I've never seen Star Wars. I have no idea. I think there's a dog in it, but I don't know anything.'
“And I was like, ‘First of all, you're an incredible writer, but that's why I want you here. I want you to be questioning [the] narrative. I don't myself, who's a lifelong fan, to just be relying on particular references in order to be earned and checked by someone that isn't super familiar with it,” she continued.
A non-Star Wars fan turned into a fan
She then revealed that the writer ended up watching the original and prequel Star Wars trilogies over Christmas. However, it was the OG trilogy that stuck with her.
“She watched the Prequels, too, but she kept texting me [about the Original Trilogy] and was like, ‘Luke and Vader are…' All those things that we've known forever were blowing her mind,” Headland recalled. “She was like, ‘Luke and Leia are brother and sister!? What the f**k?' She was writing all these things to me, and I just thought it was so funny. So she educated herself in order to be in the room, but it was really fun to have somebody like her to help collaborate.”
Star Wars: The Acolyte is the latest Disney+ series in the galaxy far, far away. The series takes place at the end of the High Republic era, which is about a century before the events of The Phantom Menace. It follows a young Padawan who reunites with her Jedi Master as they investigate crimes together.
Lee Jung-jae leads the series as Sol, a Jedi Master. Manny Jacinto, Carrie-Anne Moss, Dafne Keen, Amandla Stenberg, and Jodie Turner-Smith also star in the series.
Leslye Headland created The Acolyte. She is known for co-creating Russian Doll for Netflix. Natasha Lyonne and Amy Poehler co-created the series with Headland. Headland also directed films Bachelorette, About Last Night, and Sleeping with Other People.
Coming up, the Acolyte creator will direct an adaptation of Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo for Netflix.
Star Wars: The Acolyte will premiere on June 4 on Disney+.
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