Amandla Stenberg, a true Star Wars aficionado since her childhood, has now stepped into the galaxy far, far away with her role in the new Disney+ series The Acolyte, a testament to her deep-rooted passion for the franchise.
“I loved Star Wars before [getting the role], but now I have a deep lore-based knowledge, and I understand the entire arc,” Stenberg tells The Nerds of Color.
Stenberg has not just become a part of the Star Wars universe, but she has also embraced the role of a Star Wars lore master. Her conversations with showrunner Leslye Headland and her extensive research reflect her deep dedication and involvement in the franchise’s rich history and characters.
“It’s the most fun job,” she explains. “I spend a lot of time on Wookiepeedia. It’s one of my favorite places on the internet. I spent a lot of time theorizing and creating conspiracy theories about Star Wars in general.”
Set 100 years before The Phantom Menace, The Acolyte tells the story of respected Jedi Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) as he investigates the murder of Jedis. Stenberg plays two characters – Mae and Osha – who have a past connection with Sol and these deaths.
Like most Star Wars stories, there is a duality between the light and the dark side. Osha and Mae, twins who are “separated by tragedy when they were very young,” also face that conflict, She compares it to Anakin Skywalker’s internal conflict that led to his corruption and finding the light in his final breath, which she found it brilliant to portray her own convolution to that for her characters.
“Star Wars is actually about the complexity of that [duality],” says Stenberg. “That’s what I love so much about it.”
While Headland initially gave Stenberg the entire outline of her characters, she had the creative freedom to build her character’s persona during pre-production with the showrunner. Headland had Stenberg contribute to the characters’ backstory and design.
“[Leslye] actually worked on it for myself to contribute to it, which made it much more personal to me,” says Stenberg. “I was allowed to create this entire world from my imagination of where these characters came from and who they are now.”
Find out more with the two-episode premiere of The Acolyte on June 4 on Disney+.
