Star Wars Theory Reveals The Acolyte's Sith Sets Up A Sequel Trilogy Dark Side Cult

Summary The Acolyte's mysterious Sith character may hint at ties to the sequel trilogy, resembling Kylo Ren in design and backstory.

Knights of Ren's origin may link back to The Acolyte, showcasing a powerful, ancient character inspiring Kylo's path in the sequels.

The Acolyte may address unanswered sequel questions, possibly revealing the true identity of the original Ren and explaining Kylo's inspiration.

The recent trailer for The Acolyte gave a better look at the supposed Sith villain the Jedi face off against, but several details suggest this character may actually tie into Disney’s sequel trilogy. The Acolyte takes place almost 100 years before Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. Set during the High Republic Era, the Jedi Order is in their golden age of their Force ability. Meanwhile, the Sith Empire is meant to lie low, since the Jedi believe they are extinct. But the supposed Sith reveal in The Acolyte trailer seems to shatter their secrecy.

Up till now, the underlying assumption about The Acolyte’s Sith theories have all been tied to George Lucas’ prequel trilogy. Since the show takes place before The Phantom Menace, many have theorized that the unnamed Sith could be Darth Tenebrous or Darth Plagueis the Wise, both predecessors of Palpatine’s. And while this seems likely, the design of the Sith is actually more akin to someone from the sequel trilogy. It’s possible Disney is trying to tie together the earliest live-action Star Wars show with its latest movies.

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The Acolyte’s Sith Looks Similar To Kylo Ren

When compared side-by-side, The Acolyte’s Sith actually has a striking resemblance to Kylo Ren from the Star Wars sequel trilogy. Both characters’ helmets have an identical shape, with a small samurai-esque flap in the back of the helmet. This is known as a “shikoro” in Japanese, and serves to protect the warrior’s neck. The main difference between the two helmets is the front, where Kylo Ren has a prominent eye shield, whereas The Acolyte’s Sith has a smooth, faceless front.

In addition to the similar helmet shapes, The Acolyte’s Sith’s helmet is extremely worn and beat-up. This is not unlike Kylo Ren’s reforged helmet in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. In Japanese, “kintsugi” refers to the art of repairing broken vases and other objects with gold filigree in order to visually display the history of the object. Kylo Ren chose to repair his helmet with a red filigree rather than craft a new one. Similarly, The Acolyte’s Sith seems to have kept using their helmet for quite some time.

One of Kylo’s most important characteristics in the sequels is his obsession with the past. Despite his iconic line about letting the past die, his whole outfit and design was taken from the past. Not only was his crossguard lightsaber based off an ancient design, but the rest of his outfit was supposedly meant to reference Darth Vader. Nevertheless, his title of “Ren” came from a mysterious dark side cult that had no ties to the Sith. This is why he goes by “Kylo Ren” and not “Darth Kylo.”

Star Wars Is Vague On When The Knights Of Ren Was Formed

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Kylo Ren is referred to as the Master of the Knights of Ren, a group of dark side marauders whose origin is shrouded in mystery. According to canon, the Knights of Ren seen in the sequels were formed in the Unknown Regions of the galaxy by 3 ABY, long after The Acolyte takes place. However, the Knights got their legendary name from a far more ancient group that had been around for centuries. Like Kylo, the rest of the Knights designed their appearance off of ancient traditions and followed in the footsteps of those who came before them.

Not only did the Knights of Ren owe their status to the legacy that came before them, but Star Wars actually suggests they were much weaker than the original group. This partially explains why the Knights of Ren took a backseat in the sequel trilogy. And it also explains why they were so easily defeated by Kylo in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

The implication is that the Knights of Ren in the sequels were a pathetic copy of some far more powerful character buried way back in the Star Wars timeline. It’s quite possible that The Acolyte’s Sith may actually be the inspiration for the Knights of the Ren in the sequel trilogy. And they may even have inspired Kylo Ren to design his helmet in a similar fashion.

If This Was A Sith, Then They’re Revealing Themselves Too Soon

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Again, the underlying assumption in The Acolyte is that this unnamed character is a Sith Lord of some sort. But if they are a Sith, then they’re breaking Star Wars canon. When Qui-Gon reports his encounter with Darth Maul to the Jedi High Council in The Phantom Menace, almost every single member believes that it can’t be a Sith. Master Ki-Adi-Mundi even states that “the Sith have been extinct for a millennium.”

Based off of Master Mundi’s statement, it seems like no Jedi has encountered a Sith in the past 1000 years before The Phantom Menace. So, either none of The Acolyte’s Jedi will survive their encounter with the nameless Sith, or the Sith isn’t actually a Sith. Just because they wield a red lightsaber doesn’t necessarily mean they have to be a Sith.

Instead of being a Sith, The Acolyte’s villain could very well be one of the legendary Knights of Ren. It’s possible this character inspired—or even began—the legend later heard of in the sequels. And this would explain why the Jedi still believe the Sith are extinct; they believe this character is part of a different dark side cult.

The Acolyte May Address The Biggest Unanswered Question From The Sequels

The Acolyte will likely lead up to prequel trilogy by showing the audience the early events that led to the Jedi losing touch with the Force. However, there’s little doubt Disney will attempt to reference and tie it into its other projects as well. Just as The Mandalorian and The Bad Batch attempted to explain how Palpatine “somehow” returned, The Acolyte may end up serving as an explanation for one of the biggest unanswered questions from the sequels.

When the Knights of Ren were first mentioned in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, many expected them to play a crucial role in the rest of the sequel trilogy. Instead, they were only seen in a brief cameo in The Last Jedi, and then barely saw any action in The Rise of Skywalker before Kylo unceremoniously took them out. In short, they were underwhelming and weren’t sufficiently explained.

If The Acolyte’s villain is a founding member of the Knights of Ren, then they may finally explain who Kylo Ren was modeling himself after in the sequels. And instead of being a pathetic side character like the group in the sequels, this villain actually appears to have a menacing and imposing presence in The Acolyte trailer. And if they are the real deal, it’s possible their identity has been revealed.

Related Star Wars: Everything We Know About The Knights Of Ren Although they debuted in the sequel trilogy, the Knights of Ren have existed in the Star Wars canon for centuries, long before Kylo Ren led them.

Is The Acolyte’s “Sith” The First Ren?

While Kylo and the Knights turned “Ren” into a title, their entire cult is based on an actual character named Ren. Nevertheless, almost nothing is known about the very first Ren. By 3 ABY, a fake “Ren” had taken over the title and had become the leader of the Knights. Kylo ended up killing this Ren, taking his place as the Master of the Knights.

Long before Kylo faced off against the fake Ren, there was a mysterious original Ren who served as the inspiration for the whole group. Whoever this Ren was, they were clearly a dark side user so powerful that the Knights carried on their legacy for centuries after their death. It’s very possible that the nameless villain in The Acolyte may actually be the first Ren.

The Acolyte premieres on June 4 on Disney+.