Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Star Wars: The Acolyte episodes 1 & 2.
Summary
Amandla Stenberg, who plays both Osha and Mae Aniseya inStar Wars: The Acolyte, has revealed how yin and yang is finally at the heart of aStar Warsstory. The two-episode premiere ofThe Acolyteconfirmed that Stenberg is playing two twins, who were separated as children due to a mysterious tragedy that destroyed their home on Brendok. WhileOsha is a former Jedi Padawannow living on her own as a meknek,Mae is an assassintrying to earn the approval of a Sith, proving the two have very different worldviews - something Stenberg has now spoken to.
All 35 Star Wars Easter Eggs In The Acolyte Episodes 1 & 2
The Acolyte has finally premiered on Disney+, featuring a massive collection of exciting Easter eggs and references in the first two episodes.
Speaking toStarWars.com,Stenberg reveals how she kept the two twins separate in her mind as she brought them to life, saying “Ilike to think of them as yin and yang.“They cite Osha’s and Mae’s “different life experiences” as the cause for this divide, which has since caused each twin sister to fall into their own category. This is something Stenberg mused upon as they portrayed the twins, though they dove even deeper into the yin and yang concept to truly determine the best way to characterize them.
Stenberg discusses making use of the senses to make this divide even more clear, particularly smell and sound, and identifying scents and songs for each character that would help her to more easily separate them. For Osha, then, she fully embraced “masculine and bright” energy, and for Mae, she focused on being “feminine, dark and mysterious.” It becomes clear, then, that Stenberg’s own use of yin and yang imagery has placed this concept at the very heart ofStar Wars.
The Acolyte Is Yet Again Breaking New Yet Familiar Ground For Star Wars
Osha & Mae Draw Upon Luke & Leia, But With Yin & Yang Imagery
While many may attempt to liken the concept of the Force, with both a light and a dark side, to yin and yang, this is not quite accurate - as George Lucas himself saw the dark side as unnatural. This means that Sternberg embracing yin and yang for Osha and Mae is the first time it’s been used prominently inStar Wars. Even better is the fact that it draws upon the twin concept as seen with Luke and Leia, but it does so in a new and refreshing way.It’s breaking new ground while also remaining perfectly familiar and nostalgic.
This is not the first new thingThe Acolyteis accomplishing forStar Wars, nor is it the last.The timeline ofThe Acolytealone has already done so in a drastic way, being the first live-action project to take place outside the Skywalker saga in theHigh Republic era- 100 years beforeStar Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menaceeven takes place. Osha and Mae representing the yin and yang concept, then, is just another wayThe Acolyteis makingStar Warsfeel fresh yet familiar.
The Acolyteepisodes 1 & 2 are now streaming. New episodes release Tuesdays on Disney+.
The Acolyte
Cast
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.
