First The Acolyte footage debuts at Star Wars Celebration 2023

The Acolyte panel — (Image credit: Getty Images 2023)

Star Wars Celebration attendees were treated to a first look at The Acolyte this weekend, while Lucasfilm confirmed that the eagerly anticipated TV series will release on Disney Plus in 2024.

While the footage has yet to be unveiled online, GamesRadar+ were on the ground... The clip opened on young Padawan being trained by Lee Jung-jae's mysterious character, who says: "The force is powerful, It is power, we must respect."

Evil and darkness looks to lurk around everything corner. "This isn't about good or bad, this about power and who is allowed to use it," Jodie Turner-Smith's sinister-looking character adds, before an epic shot of Jedis with lightsabers rounds off the teaser.

On stage, showrunner Leslye Headland said she pitched the series as "Frozen meets Kill Bill", and that it nods to how George Lucas was first inspired by samurai and martial arts movies.

The Acolyte will be set between the High Republic era, a century before the events of the Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith, and the prequels themselves. The show will be a mystery thriller that will see a former Padawan and her old Jedi Master on the case of a string of crimes, which leads to them encountering sinister forces.

Alongside those mentioned, the bumper cast also includes Amandla Stenberg, Dafne Keen, Carrie-Anne Moss, Dean-Charles Chapman, Margarita Levieva, Charlie Barnett, James Henri-Thomas, Manny Jacinto, and Rebecca Henderson.

During the panel, Lee Jung-jae confirmed he's playing a Jedi Master, while Suotamo, who has brought Chewbacca to life in recent Star Wars pictures, plays a Wookie with the same skills.

"Even though it's a completely new character I'm originating, it felt like I had big shoes to step into," teased a coy Turner-Smith. "I'm excited I want to vomit a little. I just hope you love it."

"I can tease that it's a prequel!" Keen has previously said of the show. "It's kind of an explanation of how the Sith infiltrated the Jedi. It's a Sith-led story, which has never been done before."

Next up on the Star Wars release schedule is Visions Volume 2, while Ahsoka and Skeleton Crew are also expected this year, and The Mandalorian season 3 continues on Disney Plus.

You can keep up to date on all the new releases from the galaxy far, far away with our guide to the upcoming Star Wars movies and TV shows through the link.

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