Star Wars Theory: The Acolyte Trailer's Sith Lightsaber May Have A Very Dark Story
The tense imagery in the first trailer for "Star Wars: The Acolyte" hints that this miniseries will take the well-worn franchise in an interesting, fresh direction. Immediately noticeable during the trailer is how much of the action is focused on hand-to-hand combat. But there are still lightsabers aplenty, which has given rise to a theory that a very deadly faction of novel-based dark side devotees might pop up in it.
The bright red lightsaber might remind fans of those wielded by Sith lords like Darth Maul, but "The Acolyte" is slated to take place a hundred years before the rise of Anakin Skywalker. Ergo, viewers might be witnessing the unsheathing of the very first red-crystal lightsabers ever. According to the "Legacy" series of comic books, dark-sided Jedi founded the Sith empire on a wave of corrupted magics and twisted versions of their philosophy, including controlling the dead, and they used those lightsabers with red crystals to enforce it.
Another hint that we might be looking at some seriously tough Siths? Amandla Stenberg's character, whom the "Star Wars: Acolyte" trailer teased as a Jedi killer, wears robes and clothing that resemble those of the Mecrosa Order, a group of assassins who are both Force-sensitive and Sith-aligned.
All of the history regarding Sith lightsabers and the Mecrosa Order stems from stories that are not officially from the television or film sections of the "Star Wars" universe, but rather from the "Legacy" comic books and the "Legends" novel series, respectively, so that might mean they'll forever stay theories. But if they do, it wouldn't be the first time material from "Legends" was included in mainstream "Star Wars" canon.
A number of Star Wars: Legends events and characters have made it into the main continuity
If the Mecrosa Order ends up appearing in some form in "Star Wars: The Acolyte," then it won't be the first bit of "Star Wars: Legends" lore that has somehow ended up in a mainline "Star Wars" project. While the official "Star Wars" timeline has definitively eschewed comic book spin-offs and the entire "Legends" line of novels as an official part of the series, ideas from those books have ended up in many canon projects.
To wit: The idea of Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) giving birth to a son who turns to the dark side first appeared in the "Legends" universe through Jacen Solo, not Ben Solo aka Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). Concepts like Force Projection, used by Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) — who may have a potential connection to "Star Wars: The Acolyte" — to defeat Kylo Ren in "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," first appeared in "Star Wars: Dark Empire". Additionally, the notion of Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison) surviving certain death in a Sarlacc Pit didn't start with the character's Disney+ series but in "Dark Empire." Naturally, none of these events match word-for-word, but they're all clear nods back to things fans love about the novel series.
Whether you consider them just one part of the entire "Star Wars" story or an utterly verboten part of the timeline, it's hard to ignore that the "Star Wars: Legends" novels have impacted the movies and shows released after its launch. Time will tell if these fan theories pan out in some way as "Star Wars: The Acolyte" begins streaming on June 4.