The Acolyte Has Little Known Han Solo Link, Official Inspiration

As revealed in a new excerpt from an upcoming Star Wars: The Acolyte art book, the inspiration for the events of the show came from a potentially surprising character in the Star Wars universe: Han Solo.

Whether you loved it or hated it, it's fair to say that Star Wars: The Acolyte tried to do something different with the Star Wars IP.

Disney took a big swing and tried to take the franchise in a new direction, but, ultimately, it seemingly proved a little too different for the Star Wars fanbase to handle, as Star Wars: The Acolyte was unsurprisingly cancelled roughly a month after its final episode aired.

Even though it’s been well over a year since Star Wars: The Acolyte’s cancellation, the controversy surrounding the series has somehow endured. As detailed in a report by Forbes' Caroline Reid back in September 2025, we finally received confirmation of the show's previously theorised total budget: $230.8 million, or roughly $256.7 million when adjusted for current rates.

The Acolyte’s budget was a popular talking point for those who enjoyed deriding it for being “woke” online, so finally receiving confirmation of exactly how much it cost to produce once again inspired further discussion surrounding its cancellation.

The show did still earn itself its fair share of die-hard fans, though. Clearly not enough to renew it for a second season, but enough that Disney has released a couple of seemingly successful tie-in novels that focus on original characters featured in Star Wars: The Acolyte.

Likewise, a Change.org petition titled “Renew the Acolyte” has managed to earn roughly 85,000 signatures as well, and fans even attempted to generate some buzz for the series at the Star Wars Celebration event last year in April (by chanting for "season two" of The Acolyte during an interview with Manny Jacinto).

Official promotional poster for Star Wars: The Acolyte, Disney

If you ask me, I think that the series keeps making it back into headlines because of the dedication of both its haters and its supporters. The haters love to talk about how much they hate it, and the lovers hate that the show they loved was cancelled, which, when combined, leads to more and more articles about it online.

That’s why it’s kind of funny to me that the inspiration from the series seemingly came from arguably the most popular character in the original trilogy of Star Wars films: Han Solo.

As detailed in a new excerpt from the upcoming book The Art of Star Wars: The Acolyte by Kristin Baver, the character of Han Solo sounds like it was a jumping-off point for The Acolyte's conception.

“In a sprawling galaxy with endless planets and possibilities, The Acolyte is an intimate character study that puts a fresh spotlight on that very human duality in all of us. There are no battlefronts across the star systems, no Imperial faction snuffing out the Republic, and only the first hint of the Sith,” reads the excerpt.

“There are no indisputable versions of right and wrong, hero and villain, good and evil. The Acolyte teaches us something that Han Solo has been proselytising for decades. Faced with a crossroads, we all have the ability to choose our own destiny, but that doesn't mean we'll always get it right.”

This also lines up with comments made by The Acolyte's showrunner and creator, Leslye Headland, in an interview on the official Star Wars website.

“One aspect that I was very interested in exploring in the show was, depending on the way you look at it, anyone can be the bad guy… And depending on the way you look at it, anyone can be the good guy,” Headland revealed.

“Nobody wakes up in the morning and thinks they're the villain. Everybody is doing what they think is either best for them or what's expected of them or trying to fit themselves in a particular paradigm or ideal that is important to the institution, family, or place in the world that they find themselves in.”

It’s just odd to find out that Han Solo, arguably the most beloved character in all of Star Wars fiction, served as a sort of basis for such a heavily divisive Star Wars show.

Will be interesting to see what other tidbits come out of The Art of Star Wars: The Acolyte’s full release on February 5, because I have a feeling that something in there is going to lead to us talking about it all over again next month.