What is an ‘Acolyte,’ Anyway? The Dark Meaning Behind the New Star Wars Show Title 

So, what is an Acolyte, anyway? That might be the question that’s at the top of your mind as you hit play on the newest Star Wars series to grace Disney+: The Acolyte. I mean, after all, you know what a Jedi is, what a Sith is, and even what a Padawan is. But what the heck is an Acolyte in the context of the Star Wars universe? Moreover, what is an acolyte in our universe? It’s not a word you hear tossed around at brunch too often…

You may already know, though, that The Acolyte is a new Disney+ show created by writer/director Leslye Headland. The show stars Amandla Stenberg as Mae, the eponymous Acolyte, aka a student of the Dark Side of the Force targeting Jedi knights from her past. Her murder spree captures the attention of Jedi Master Sol (Lee Jung-Jae), who soon embarks on a mission of his own to bring the killer in.

The first two episodes of The Acolyte premiered on Disney+ last night, presenting long-time Star Wars fans with twists, turns, and Easter eggs from their favorite High Republic era books. What the show has not necessarily offered, however, is a straightforward explanation of what an Acolyte is. Confused? Here’s everything you need to know about what an Acolyte is and what the title of The Acolyte means..

What is an Acolyte?

The straightforward definition of the word “acolyte,” per Merriam-Webster, is “one who assists a member of the clergy in a liturgical service by performing minor duties” or “one who attends or assists a leader.” It’s usually used in common parlance to denote someone who is feverishly devoted to someone. Think a follower, but veering towards cult follower.

Okay, that’s what being an acolyte means in the real world, but what is an Acolyte in the context of the new Star Wars show, The Acolyte?

What is an Acolyte in Star Wars Canon? The Acolyte Show Title Explained:

At the end of The Acolyte Episode 1 “Lost/Found,” Mae’s mysterious master monologues for a beat about what can defeat a Jedi: “The Jedi live in a dream. A dream they believe everyone shares. If you attack a Jedi with a weapon, you will fail. Steel or laser are no threat to them. But an Acolyte… An Acolyte kills without a weapon. An Acolyte… kills the dream.”

Okay, so that might seem really vague, but it’s actually telling us a lot. Mae is the titular Acolyte, assisting this shadowy villain with his plan to destroy the Jedi. Although Mae is seemingly on a mission to kill the Jedi she believes destroyed her life, there’s a bigger plan at play. Her master believes the Jedi can withstand an attack from an outsider, but they cannot survive an existential threat to their “dream,” or philosophy. As an Acolyte of the Dark Side, Mae is supposed to provide that existential threat.

So how do you kill a dream? We’re only two episodes into The Acolyte, but we’ve already got some clues. In The Acolyte Episode 2 “Revenge/Justice,” we watch as Mae attempts to kill Master Torbin (Dean-Charles Chapman). The Jedi has taken the Barash Vow, named for High Republic Jedi Barash Silvain who withdrew from all Jedi activities as an act of atonement. (It’s kind of like being a monk in solitude.) Anyway, Mae quickly realizes that Master Torbin’s meditative state means he is too strong in the Force for her to break through his literal Force walls. She cannot strike him. What she can do is remind him of the reason he took the Barash Vow in the first place: she can strike his conscience.

Ultimately, Master Torbin willfully takes the poison Mae provides to him, indicating that he feels remorse for whatever he did to her.

Mae’s backstory seems to be tied to some sort of sin committed by the Jedi. Ergo, her very existence — complete with her choice to reject the Jedi code to study with a Dark Side user — threatens the Jedi’s confidence in their righteousness. At least, that’s how I read it.

When Decider spoke to Amandla Stenberg recently, she cautioned that Mae’s connection to the Force is maybe more complex than just a question of good versus bad.

Well, to be honest, I don’t even think of Mae as necessarily just being Sith. I think that there’s a lot of characters in the Star Wars Universe who traverse both the light in the dark,” Stenberg said. “There’s gray Jedi, there’s an entire gray Jedi code. And there are Force users who use it in a different manner.”

“For Mae, well, I think it’s more complex than just the Light or the Dark.”

Maybe we’ll get more specifics in the weeks ahead, but it seems that The Acolyte is about puncturing the Jedi’s perfect image… An Acolyte is a student of the Dark Side that also serves as a weapon against the Jedi.