Leslye Headland: Acolyte Nudity “Had to Happen”
This week’s episode of The Acolyte featured more eye candy than usual, and I don’t mean the show’s middling effects work. Qimir/The Stranger/Smilo Ren appears in the nude to show Osha his scar, but she sees much more than that. Showrunner Leslye Headland spoke with Collider’s Maggie Lovitt about episode 6, “Teach/Corrupt,” and how far she was “allowed to push things with how much skin was shown.” Headland responded, “Lucasfilm really believed in my vision. From a narrative perspective, it had to happen. It had to.”
She continued:
“He [Manny Jacinto as Qimir] did, like, a Steven Seagal neck snap in the [previous] episode. How do you, at all, get from that to humanity? The only way to do that is to show him in such a wildly vulnerable position, and it has to be visual. I can’t think of something more vulnerable than someone holding a lightsaber on someone who’s that exposed. I just don’t. I felt like he was so merciless in the previous episode that he had to stand in front of her and say, ‘You absolutely can kill me.’ Essentially, ‘I’m at your mercy.’ It couldn’t feel like a put-on. It had to feel like he genuinely was like, ‘Totally. You can do this. There’s nobody around.’
“‘No one’s gonna judge you for it, so what’s up?’ And again, it feeds in narratively to her decisions of still upholding this. He says, ‘You’re wondering if it’s honorable to kill me like this. You’re still hanging on to the rules. You’re still hanging on to this code.’ Listen, part of it is just decency, and she’s a good person, but I think he’s also starting to teach her. He’s also starting to go, ‘I deserve this.’”
“The dynamics had to be what they are after what he did in [Episode] 5. He cannot seem like an alpha male-y, intimidating — we know he’s capable of that from 5 — but that cannot be his dynamic with her. It wouldn’t make sense!”
“We have to see this other side of him, and we have to see specifically the way he is with her. He never let Mae see his face, and he let her (Osha) see him naked. You know what I mean? The character design was very, very intentional.”
Okay, so Headland talks a lot here, but the central idea is that Qimir’s nakedness was essential for Osha not to perceive him as a threat. After the crazy Force Fu he performed in “Night,” Headland wanted him to be fully vulnerable so Osha would hear him out. That makes enough sense to me, but the framing and filming make it odd. The nudity feels sexualized in a way they wouldn’t sexualize a female character. Can you imagine a male hero watching a female villain undress, drift into a pool, and take a bath? Can you see why it’s creepy and just a weird scene? As this OP Sith character, Qimir knows she’s there and wants to be seen. But that’s weird and creepy, too. The camera also lingers uncomfortably on Qimir’s legs, pectorals, and arms. This aspect is unnecessary and inappropriate for Star Wars.
I’m aware there is a precedent for this, both the nudity and the suggestion of sex. Kylo Ren similarly appeared topless before Rey in The Last Jedi, and Andor contains a couple of scenes that directly imply sexual encounters. It’s also notable that Leslye Headland has cited both as influences on The Acolyte. I have only seen The Last Jedi once because I didn’t enjoy it, but from what I recall, Rey was checking him out more than the camera itself was. Qimir’s scene feels voyeuristic and just gross. Andor doesn’t contain any nudity, but Cassian looks for his long-lost sister in a brothel, and Bix and her business partner Timm hook up. I don’t know how Andor inspired Leslye Headland, but it’s a superior show to Acolyte in every way, and this is one. In Andor, we know exactly what’s happening/about to happen, but it’s so tasteful and restrained. We see just enough small talk and undressing between Bix and Timm to get the point. I’m not opposed to nudity or sex in TV/movies; I just don’t think it’s right for Star Wars. This isn’t Game of Thrones, and it’s not meant to be.
But what do you think? Was Qimir’s bath an essential part of the episode? Could it have been kept in but done better? Let us know in the comments!
Comments (2)
Just watched video from Echo Base Network with “hypersexual” in the title.
Brings to mind something that has never worked in Hollywood and that is, people with alt sexuality paired in normal relationships on screen. It has never worked, which is why it is cringe and I think Gen Z naturally rejects it.
For example, Stenberg looks like a little girl while Manny Jacinto looks like a real man. They have ZERO chemistry. None.
And this is a pitfall of acting in general. When one actor is not straight, sometimes, you can naturally sense there there is no actual love or heat on the screen.
This is what bombed in this scene with Amandla and Manny. There’s no actual heat or seduction because she does not appear interested in any way. It’s actually kind of funny to watch. It was like the Opposite of Steamy.
Saw a funny comment that said, “The Power of Manny.” Jacinto. He comes from a hiphop dance background.
Hard to comment on this, because Princess Leia’s Slave outfit was unforgettable, like a belly-dancer outfit. The thing is, I see the inversion and the inversion is always a tell.
It’s not just this show though. Disney is starting to get a bit lewd in a whole bunch of projects and that also shows the slouching into kink, which is groomer behavior. The groomer behavior is something we are seeing more and more of. It’s now become the rebellious position to stand against the temptation. It’s really unwarranted.
Aside from this, the show is not good. It is not well casted. It is not well written. It looks the same as Willow to me.
It’s like someone clicked a button, and poof, overnight, everything looked the same titrated mix of diversity and it comes off very unnatural and try-hard. It’s so forced and square peg. None of it belongs.
She does not belong making Star Wars and, due to that, it lacks every shred of authenticity. For once, you have to agree with John Campea and bail on it. I don’t understand how people can watch this and try to dissect the story. It’s just not interesting at all. The mystery of the original is just not there at all, and really, that’s all fans are seeking, the old Obi-wan and Yoda type reverence for the force that is now long past gone.
I’ll say it again for younger fans, put someone like Drew Karpyshyn in charge. I just want someone who knows how to capture that old Jediism. I want to hear younger fans start demanding Drew Karpyshyn as head of SW. George Lucas did something great, but his time is past and he lost his juice. Same with Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill. Let it all go. Move on, but for the love of The Force, find a real capable executive of GL’s caliber to take the lead.