18-Year-Old Forgotten Star Wars Lore Explains Why The Next TV Show Doesn't Break Phantom Menace Canon

Summary Star Wars: The Acolyte is set in the High Republic Era, exploring the golden age of the Jedi Order and the Republic before the prequels.

Despite criticism, The Acolyte won't actually retcon The Phantom Menace, as Star Wars lore indicates Sith presence before the prequels.

The show has potential to delve into the complex relationship between the Jedi and the Sith, navigating dark side influences.

Star Wars: The Acolyte, Star Wars' next TV show, has already been criticized for retconning Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace; however, nearly two-decade-old Star Wars lore proves that isn't the case. The Acolyte is set approximately 100 years before the prequels in the High Republic Era, the period considered the golden age of the Jedi Order and the Republic. This period has yet to be explored in Star Wars movies and TV shows, so The Acolyte will be a particularly exciting addition to the Star Wars timeline.

However, the show has already begun to draw criticism. Although updates on The Acolyte remain ongoing, The Acolyte trailer revealed that the Sith may be lurking in the shadows, ready to strike the Jedi. While a return of the Sith in this era hasn't been confirmed, this possibility seemingly retcons the assertion in The Phantom Menace that the Sith had been eradicated and absent for a thousand years. To the contrary, 18-year-old Star Wars lore suggests that no retcon is taking place in The Acolyte after all.

Related No, Star Wars: The Acolyte Hasn't Just Retconned The Phantom Menace The Acolyte, the next Star Wars Disney+ TV show, is already coming under fire for supposedly retconning The Phantom Menace - but is it really?

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Legends Revealed Sith Cults Flourished Before The Phantom Menace

While Star Wars canon has long suggested that the Sith were dormant in the centuries leading up to the prequel trilogy, Star Wars Legends has indicated otherwise. In fact, Legends made it clear that not only were the Sith not extinct as the prequels' Jedi Order believed but also that there was much at work for the Sith behind the scenes. The 2006 Hyperspace article Evil Never Dies: The Sith Dynasties, written by Abel G. Peña, explains:

"The Jedi heard next to nothing of the Sith after the Battle of Rusaan. There were the vague threats by dark sider Kibh Jeen at his moment of desperation during the Dark Jedi Conflict (circa 150 years before the Battle of Naboo), who spouted seeming gibberish about there always being no more or less than two Sith, but few Jedi gave his mad utterances any credence. But then the Sith cultists began emerging. These 'Sith' were disorganized and harmless for the most part. Many were merely youths in rebellion, without any solid idea of Sith doctrine or even any Force-sensitivity. But not all of them."

This excerpt is fascinating for a number of reasons. For one, it nods toward the Jedi's misunderstanding of the Sith Rule of Two, which was already established in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Interestingly, though, this excerpt suggests that the opposite was true for the Jedi just a century and a half prior to The Phantom Menace (at least in Legends). Just as Master Yoda incorrectly stated, the dark side Force user Kibh Jeen, named in the text, believed that there were only ever two Sith, "No more, no less."

Instead, the sacred Jedi texts Rey discovered in The Rise of Skywalker revealed that the Sith were many but were often led by two. It seems, at least in the Legends excerpt, the Jedi were already aware of that. Perhaps the even more interesting aspect of this text is the notion that Sith cultists were rising up during that period. The Sith cult on Exegol was featured heavily in The Rise of Skywalker, but these cultists represent something different.

Rather than the organized Sith cult in The Rise of Skywalker, these cultists were radicals who were interested in the notion of the Sith without any real connection to them or the dark side. However, the excerpt goes on to explain that some of these 'Sith' were in fact Force-sensitive and more aware of what it was to be a Sith. In part, this makes sense; just as has been described throughout Star Wars, light and dark will always rise to meet one another. With the Force out of balance, the Sith were bound to return in some form.

With the Force out of balance, the Sith were bound to return in some form.

The Rise Of The Sith Has Been Mentioned In Star Wars Canon

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Although Evil Never Dies is Legends, it nevertheless reflects the nature of the Sith in a way that directly ties into canon. In fact, canon Star Wars stories have revealed similar details about the activity of the Sith prior to The Phantom Menace. The canon novel Dooku: Jedi Lost, written by Cavan Scott, revealed that Sith artifacts were being discovered more and more frequently by the Jedi, implying that Sith activity was on the rise. Such activity could very well be tied to Sith cultists, not unlike those in Evil Never Dies or the Jensaarai, another Legends Sith cult.

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Both texts not only suggest that Sith activity remained even in the so-called golden era of the Jedi Order when the Sith were meant to be eradicated but also that the Jedi fundamentally misunderstood the nature of the dark side and of the Sith during this period. Just as Luke Skywalker eventually pointed out, in this matter, the Jedi were reflecting considerable hubris. They believed they had defeated the Sith and let their guard down despite the fact that the Force seeks balance.

The Jedi fundamentally misunderstood the nature of the dark side and of the Sith during this period.

In Legends, Many Sith Cults Became Pawns Of The True Sith

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Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the nature of the Sith, cultists are not often held in high regard and instead serve as little more than lackeys to the true Sith Lords. One such group working for the Sith was the Thyrsus Sun Guard, a mercenary group in Star Wars canon dating back thousands of years. Interestingly, although the group fought alongside the Republic during the Clone Wars, they were secretly also carrying out Darth Sidious' bidding.

This type of structure makes perfect sense for the Sith during this era and supports the notion that, despite what the Jedi may have believed, the Sith were certainly never eradicated. In fact, the best way for the Sith to ensure their own survival would be to convince the Jedi they had gone extinct while having others act on their behalf. Particularly that many of these cultists were not Force-sensitive made it all the better; the Jedi would be even less likely to detect the activity, as it would not require the dark side of the Force.

The best way for the Sith to ensure their own survival would be to convince the Jedi they had gone extinct while having others act on their behalf.

Does This Explain Why There Are "Sith" In The Acolyte?

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These factors could certainly explain why The Acolyte trailer seems to indicate that the Sith have emerged and are attacking the Jedi. Notably, the trailer hasn't confirmed whether the characters depicted are Sith; even characters such as Mae, who seems to be an antagonist in the show, haven't been fully defined. It isn't clear whether Mae is a Sith or even a dark side Force user, although she is seen fighting Jedi Master Indara. However, no matter Mae's identity, the show may very well reveal pro-Sith sentiments, signaling the events to come in the prequels.

Related Who Is Mae & Is She A Sith? Amandla Stenberg's The Acolyte Character Explained Amandla Stenberg's masked fighter Mae was featured prominently in the trailer for Star Wars: The Acolyte, and this is everything known about her.

Moreover, The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland has indicated that she looked to lore from beyond Star Wars canon to aid her in shaping the show. This means that some of these very concepts could have weighed in on how she navigated questions of the Sith and the dark side that will no doubt emerge during The Acolyte. While the exact nature and extent of Sith involvement in Star Wars: The Acolyte remains to be seen, significant Star Wars lore suggests that, no, the show will not be altering Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace canon.

The Acolyte The Acolyte is a television series set in the Star Wars universe at the end of the High Republic Era, where both the Jedi and the Galactic Empire were at the height of their influence. This sci-fi thriller sees a former Padawan reunite with her former Jedi Master as they investigate several crimes - all leading to darkness erupting from beneath the surface and preparing to bring about the end of the High Republic. Cast Dafne Keen , Lee Jung-jae , Amandla Stenberg , Jodie Turner-Smith , Joonas Suotamo , Carrie-Anne Moss , Margarita Levieva , Charlie Barnett , Dean-Charles Chapman Seasons 1 Streaming Service(s) Disney+ Franchise(s) Star Wars Writers Leslye Headland , Charmaine De Grate , Kor Adana

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