New Star Wars Teaser Gives First Look At A Classic Clone Wars Alien In Live-Action At Last (2024)

The next Star Wars show, The Acolyte, recently revealed a glimpse of the first live-action appearance of a classic alien species that debuted in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. This species is particularly obscure, but they're not the first that The Acolyte will bring to live-action. The show is already set to include other little-seen species, such as Dafne Keen's part-Theelin Jecki Lon, and even the first Wookiee Jedi in live-action. It's yet another sign that The Acolyte's showrunner, Leslye Headland, has a massive and impressive knowledge of almost every part of Star Wars, and that she's passionate about including as much of it as she can.

During a featurette posted by Rotten Tomatoes TV, several stars of The Acolyte spoke about their roles in the show, and some new footage was included in between their comments. One scene in particular highlighted a Star Wars race that has never appeared in live-action before: the Zygerrians.

Not only does The Acolyte bring the Zygerrians to live-action, it also made its Zygerrian character a Jedi, as they were briefly seen wearing the ceremonial white robes of the High Republic era and walking with Jedi Knight Yord Fandar. Despite never appearing in live-action, the Zygerrians have a long history in the Star Wars galaxy, which could very well be expanded upon in The Acolyte.

Who Are The Zygerrians, Star Wars' Dangerous Race Of Slavers?

The Zygerrians' first canon appearance came in 2011 during The Clone Wars season 4, episode 11. Since then, Zygerrian characters have made sporadic appearances in later episodes of The Clone Wars, two episodes of The Bad Batch, and several books and comics, but never in live-action. Notably, Zygerrians have been a significant part of the High Republic, as they acted as both allies to the Nihil and enemies to the Jedi. It seems that The Acolyte will build off those High Republic appearances, and the fact that there is a Zygerrian Jedi could mean that they'll start repairing their dark reputation.

Almost every time a Zygerrian has made an appearance in Star Wars, they worked as a slaver and an antagonist to the Jedi. The Zygerrian species has a long history with the Galactic slave trade, as their entire society was structured around it since the days of the Old Republic. They were known for using a brutal weapon called an electro-whip, which served as a way for them to keep their captives in line. Zygerrians also had deep connections to the underworld of Star Wars, as slavery had been outlawed in the Republic, which forced them to trade with gangs like the Pyke Syndicate.

It's not clear exactly how the Zygerrian Jedi will play into The Acolyte, but there are almost endless possibilities. They could go a long way in repairing the species' reputation in the galaxy, as any member of the Jedi Order would have a great opportunity to do so. Alternatively, their character could follow The Clone Wars' lead, and show the Zygerrians offering a biting critique of the Jedi's practice of recruiting Force-sensitive younglings by making a comparison to their practice of slavery. The Zygerrians may have a bad reputation, but the fact that they'll be represented in The Acolyte is very exciting.

The Acolyte premieres on June 4 on Disney+.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes TV

The Acolyte

Cast

Dafne Keen , Lee Jung-jae , Amandla Stenberg , Jodie Turner-Smith , Joonas Suotamo , Carrie-Anne Moss , Margarita Levieva , Charlie Barnett , Dean-Charles Chapman

Seasons

1

Streaming Service(s)

Disney+

Showrunner

Leslye Headland