The Acolyte: Are hopes for a Season 2 in jeopardy?

Despite the mixed reactions to The Acolyte, many fans are holding out hope that a second season will soon be confirmed.

Before the series began, most of Leslye Headland's interviews seemed to hint that she had reassurance from Lucasfilm that the show would have multiple seasons. She's gone on record saying she would like to do at least five seasons. However, as the weeks have passed and viewership data has begun rolling in, the hope of a second season seems to be dwindling.

According to Forbes, Nielsen's numbers show that the viewership for The Acolyte's premiere was 50% lower than Ahsoka and 75% lower than The Mandalorian. As of now, based on the data that's been released for the first few episodes of The Acolyte, it's one of the least-watched Star Wars shows, behind everything from Obi-Wan Kenobi to The Book of Boba Fett and barely ahead of Andor. Andor was the least-watched series, but also the most widely praised. That's another area The Acolyte lacks that has nothing to do with the haters. Many neutral fans who are watching are unhappy with the quality of the writing and various other aspects of the series.

It's also important to note that this is just one source. As previously reported, a different metrics source has The Acolyte outpacing several Star Wars series in views and engagement metrics, which points to its wild success.

Like Andor, The Acolyte might be given a second chance to redeem itself. However, the real issue is the disparity between its performance and the massive production budget of $180 million. The Acolyte costs more than Ahsoka, The Mandalorian, and nearly as much as Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Andor also had a huge budget, but the critical acclaim and positive fan reactions more than made up for its low viewership, resulting in Disney allotting an even higher budget to Andor Season 2. On the other hand, The Acolyte's visuals have failed to impress, except for its exceptional lightsaber duels, which have unanimously received praise. Otherwise, the show's overall visual quality has fallen short of expectations and doesn't justify the $180 million budget.

It's unlikely that the lukewarm reception for The Acolyte, coupled with its high budget, will motivate Disney to keep the series going. There's an outside chance that recent episodes have performed much better than its first few, but the chances of improvement are slim. The Acolyte's fate now lies in the hands of Disney and Lucasfilm, who must decide whether to greenlight another season or if its first season will be its last.

The Acolyte is streaming on Disney+.