The main villain in Star Wars: The Acolyte was partly inspired by naked Elden Ring players like Let Me Solo Her: "These people are f***ing crazy"

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The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland is a big Elden Ring nerd like the rest of us

The Acolyte
(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

Just a heads up, this article contains major spoilers for The Acolyte episode 5. Turn back now if you aren't caught up!

The costume design for Star Wars: The Acolyte's main villain was partly inspired by Elden Ring, according to showrunner Leslye Headland.

In an interview with Inverse, Headland talks about the choice to make Qimir, AKA The Stranger, an armor-less Sith badass. Headland recalled instances where she was playing Elden Ring and the players she summoned weren't wearing any armor, which she views as "crazy." Furthermore, it's these mostly naked Tarnished, which of course is the signature style of Elden Ring legend Let Me Solo Her, that at least partly inspired Qimir's costume design.

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"So much of Qimir was understanding how to use your body and not just standing there in a suit or being encumbered by a suit. We were like, 'We have to get him in something flowy.' As soon as I said he didn’t have armor, everyone lost their mind. 'How can you not have armor?' I was like, 'Why would you wear armor if you’re not going to get hit?' It’s like the Elden Ring costume. The Elden Bling. When you summon people, you always summon the people that aren’t wearing anything, and it’s like, 'These people are fucking crazy.'"

Headland even offered a bit of advice on how to handle Elden Ring's famously challenging bosses. "Yeah, you have to go in with that offensive attitude, especially with those bosses. You can’t be getting back and panic rolling. You have to be aggressive with them. You have to roll into things," she said.

For more on Elden Ring, here's our guide on all of the Shadow of the Erdtree bosses and how to beat them.

The Acolyte continues weekly on Disney Plus, and you can read more about the show with our deep dives and exclusives below: 

Jordan Gerblick
Jordan Gerblick
Staff Writer

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.