The ACCOLITE almost connected the stranger to Kylo Ren in a brilliant way

The cancellation of The Acolyte could have closed the door on one of the most unique Star Wars stories from Disney and Lucasfilm, and one of the biggest missed opportunities lies in the surrounding mystery Manny Giacintothe character of, the Stranger.

He was presented as a complex and unpredictable villain whose ideas about the Force, the Jedi and the Sith were creating something special.

Now, thanks to some new details revealed by the next book The art of Star Wars: The Acolyte Of Kristin Baverwe know how big those plans really were and how they could have directly connected to Kylo Ren and the Knights of Ren.

In the pages that have just emerged from the art book, The Acolyte Creator Leslye Promontory revealed that the Stranger’s design and plot were intended to tease a connection to the dark warriors who would one day follow Kylo Ren.

“The design of the mask seemed to foreshadow a possible connection between the Knights of Ren and the form of Kylo Ren that we landed on,” Headland explained. “We just started going in that direction.”

That direction wasn’t just visual. Headland went on to explain how the Stranger was part of a larger plan to expand Sith mythology and the Rule of Two.

“It was in the character design, as well as knowing that we were going to introduce Darth Plagueis, who will eventually have to have Palpatine as his apprentice,” he said.

“Following the Rule of Two, a precept that limited the Sith to just two at a time, a master and an apprentice, one way to continue is for the Stranger to be the first Knight of Ren, part of a Sith-adjacent cult that we know ultimately survives.”

It’s a fascinating idea, the Stranger as the point of origin of the Knights of Ren, existing outside of the traditional Sith hierarchy but continuing the legacy of the Dark Side.

Headland even slipped in subtle musical nods to tie things together. “And since we never mention it, you don’t know,” he joked. “Does he have a first name and then his last name is Ren? That’s a good way to nod without having to give too much information.”

It’s the kind of deep connection Star Wars fans love to theorize. The Sith are always limited by their code, but the galaxy is full of Dark Side users who don’t obey that rule.

The idea that the Stranger may have been the spark that led to the formation of the Knights of Ren adds a whole new layer to the Star Wars the story, unfortunately for fans of the series, is one we may never see on screen.

The art of Star Wars: The Acolyte will be released in January and can be pre-ordered now. The book includes new concept art and behind-the-scenes insights into the series that could have changed everything we thought we knew about the Dark Side.