The Acolyte star Lee Jung-jae has opened up about what he thought about the racist backlash on the Star Wars series. This past summer, The Acolyte received backlash from toxic Star Wars fans, getting review-bombed even before its Disney+ premiere. Some fans of The Acolyte believed that the controversial negativity was rooted in racism, particularly the show's diverse cast of characters. Despite this backlash, Master Sol actor Jung-jae has chosen to have a positive outlook.
Speaking to Vanity Fair, Jung-jae shared his honest thoughts about how the backlash made him feel: “My feelings were hurt. Especially for Leslye Headland—her feelings must have hurt a lot.”
Though Lee knows how passionate the Star Wars fans are, he said that he was still "shocked" by the racist backlash, but he also expressed hope for a future that's much brighter than the present. “I can only have faith that racism will end someday,” he said, “even though it’s going to be hard.”
Disney cancelled The Acolyte in August, meaning the multiple cliffhangers of Season 1 will never be resolved. Lee also expressed hopes that The Acolyte will one day be more appreciated. “For some work, it takes time to gain traction, and I have strong hopes that people will like it as time passes,” he told the outlet.
Unfortunately, the toxic backlash is nothing new in the Star Wars fandom, dating back many years, but Jung-jae's outlook builds upon the foundation of the franchise itself: hope. It's refreshing to see Jung-jae's positivity, and regardless of how divided the Star Wars fandom is, his performance as the first Asian actor to portray a Jedi Master deserves praise. Master Sol was also his first English-speaking role. He wasn’t fluent in speaking English and thus learned how to in order to play Sol in The Acolyte.
"Learning English was definitely a huge challenge in preparing for this role," Jung-jae revealed to Radio Times. "However, I had two incredible dialogue coaches that were helping me along the way, and we spent so much time together, and down to the small details they were really teaching me how to speak - and because they had such great personalities as well, we were always joking around and laughing on set, so it still remains a really great memory for me."
What's next for Lee Jung-jae?
Lee Jung-jae will return as Seong Gi-hun, a.k.a. Player No. 456 in Squid Game Season 2, which is scheduled to release on Netflix on December 26. Earlier this year, Netflix confirmed a third and final season for its hit survival thriller series, which is set to premiere sometime in 2025. You can watch the latest trailer for Squid Game Season 2 below:
Jung-jae is also set to reprise his role as a manic killer in Ray, a TV series spun off from 2020 Korean action-horror movie Deliver Us From Evil.
