Amandla Stenberg addresses racism and vitriol with The Acolyte cancellation

The Acolyte only had eight episodes and was canceled after one season, dividing the Star Wars fandom. It made Amandla Stenberg, who portrayed the young Jedi Osha Aniseya, a deserved household name. The series, which airs on Disney+, was set years before the Skywalker Era and delivered a new promise to the Star Wars universe. It was the first of the franchise's kind to have POC leads, and while incorporating this direction was a positive arc for Lucas Films, Disney, and Star Wars, a group of so-called fans villainized the change.

Having been a Star Wars fan for decades and having the rare opportunity of meeting Mark Hamill at this year's FAN EXPO Chicago, I find it deplorable that people feel they must go to extreme lengths to attack just because they disagreed with the story's elements. The Acolyte wasn't perfect; the writing could've been more vital, or perhaps not so focused on the chemistry between Osha and Qimir, as it distracted from the initial premise. But these elements are beside the point of the fans' toxic abuse

It's okay if one doesn't like how a show is structured or a specific character arc or trait, as that's a fandom's environment (it's meant to perplex the emotional realms), but to send discrimination and racism to an individual trying to craft the character as directed with their own reflection isn't okay, and it's a major problem

Stenberg is voicing her thoughts on that problem and why she isn't allowing it to impact her.

What Amandla Stenberg said about receiving online hate and The Acolyte being cancelled

Taking to her Instagram Stories on August 28th, Stenberg addressed the fact that while she's "sad" that The Acolyte isn't moving ahead with a second season, she's not "shocked," to say the least. Not only was she attacked from the Dark Side of the fandom, but her castmates were as well.

"I’m going to be transparent and say it’s not a huge shock for me. There has been a rampage of vitriol that we have faced since the show was even announced when it was still just a concept, and no one had even seen it. That’s when we started experiencing a rampage of, I would say, hyper-conservative bigotry and vitriol, prejudice, hatred and hateful language toward us."

Stenberg also notes that while they haven't encountered a toxic fanbase before, the pressure was massively felt when she was hired to portray Osha in the Star Wars prequel.

"[The abuse] really affected me when I first got the job. Because it’s just not something, even though I anticipated it happening, it’s not something you can fully understand what it feels like until it’s happening to you."

But you know what they say: You cannot allow one's ominous outlook to eliminate your light, no matter what. Otherwise, it wouldn't achieve a positive mind reset, aiming to become more efficient in life. Stenberg clarifies that her experience would only allow her to improve and not be discouraging, even when working for the Walt Disney Company, one of the world's largest conglomerates.

"However, I feel like I’ve kind of moved through those feelings in various ways, including being vocal about [them] myself. It just became inarguable for me, at a certain point, that in order to continue to be myself, I would have to honor my value system by being vocal, even in the context of working for Disney."

Despite the cruel backlash Stenberg received, she was met with praise and support for her role as Osha, and the positive feedback made her Star Wars experience "worthwhile."

"Of course, I’m very sad about [The Acolyte] being canceled. I just want to let those people know out there who supported us in that way and supported us vocally, despite and in the face of all of the vitriol that we received and the kind of targeted attack, I would say, we received by the alt-right, just that you were deeply loved and appreciated. And it made this job all the worthwhile for me."

Why was The Acolyte cancelled in the first place?

The series was canceled due to poor ratings and negative fan behavior. While the former is a crucial indicator of deciding if a show should be renewed, the latter shouldn't make a difference. Why do you ask? I hate to say it as I had my share of displeasure with media outputs, but the writers and producers have the word on how their story should be told, and the viewers can decide for themselves of whether they want to continue watching based on the final production. Criticism regarding one's work and how it's executed onscreen is natural and could improve the project if they're considered. As viewers and fans, we want the best for our shows, but going as far as being inhumane about it is not the way to go.

Fandoms, no matter what the opinions reflect, should be a safe space for people to express their favorite media forms, and I'd much rather see spreading kindness rather than spreading hatred.