A big mystery surrounds Mae’s (Amandla Stenberg) Master in Star Wars: The Acolyte. Long before the show premiered, it had been teasing the appearance of a mysterious big bad that led to several theories. As many assume that it could be Darth Tenebrous, it looks like viewers know him all along after The Acolyte Episode 4, titled Day, seems to hint at the identity of the Sith behind the smiling helmet.
Warning: Major spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk.
The unknown Sith first appeared in The Acolyte Episode 1, Lost/Found, waiting for Mae by the ocean on the planet Olega. Viewers then got a chance to get a good look at him in the recently-released Episode 4. He came face to face with Osha (Stenberg) before he used the Force to get her out of his way and fight the Jedi, led by Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae). But before his surprising appearance, Mae had expressed her fear of failing to kill a Jedi without a weapon, knowing her master would kill her while talking to Qimir (Manny Jacinto).
Qimir was trying to convince Mae to complete her mission. Mae tricked Qimir and set a trap so that she could leave him and surrender herself to the Wookie Jedi Master Kelnacca (Joonas Suotamo). However, the moment she arrived in his hut, Kelnacca was already dead, while she stayed hidden inside after sensing her Master was there. So, though the Sith remained hiding his face, judging by this unexpected turn of events, it looked like Qimir was behind the Sith mask.
Hints that Qimir Could be the Mysterious Sith in Star Wars: The Acolyte
Fans first suspected Qimir could be the mysterious Sith when he first appeared in The Acolyte Episode 2, Revenge/Justice. His former smuggler-turned-trader persona seemed to be a cover for his real identity, considering his abilities and sharp-witted mind. He managed to infiltrate an apothecary on Olega, probably killing the shop owner to take over the place and tricked the Jedi, who possessed the strongest Mind Trick abilities.
He, too, quickly discerned that Osha was pretending to be her sister, Mae. He also managed to help Mae locate and kill the Jedi she was targeting, like concocting a poison for Master Torbin (Dean-Charles Chapman) in seconds.
In The Acolyte Episode 4, he escaped Mae’s trap despite being strung up when he was nowhere to be found when the Jedi came across the same area where Mae left him. He also effortlessly navigated the planet Khofar to find Kelnacca in the middle of a jungle. As Mae found Kelnacca’s dead body with a fresh wound, considering Qimir seemed to know the place like the back of his hand, he might have taken a shortcut to kill the Wookie just before Mae’s arrival.
Though it remains to be seen if Qimir is the mysterious Sith in The Acolyte, it’s good to note that the Sith in Star Wars Legends and canon use dual identities, like General Palpatine. However, it’s also possible that the show is trying to trick the audience into thinking that Qimir is a Sith and using him as a red herring to introduce a bigger antagonist, like Darth Tenebrous or Darth Plagueis.
The Acolyte Episodes 1 to 4 are available to stream on Disney+. New episodes are set to be released every Tuesday.
