Posted in: Disney+, Star Wars, TV | Tagged: amandla stenberg, disney, Lee Jung-Jae, Leslye Headland, Manny Jacinto, Rebecca Henderson, Star Wars: The Acolyte, The Acolyte

The Acolyte Star Manny Jacinto on Finale, Qimir/Osha Dynamic & More

Manny Jacinto discusses what went down during The Acolyte season finale - from the Qimir/Osha dynamic to fighting styles and more.

The circle is complete with The Acolyte season finale under wraps and no word on a possible season two. The finale, also titled "The Acolyte," saw Sol (Lee Jung-jae), the final of the four Jedi that visited Mae & Osha (Amandla Stenberg) 16 years ago in Brendok, fall at the hands of his former apprentice after he revealed the truth to her about accidentally killing her mother. Osha, who's been training under Qimir/The Stranger (Manny Jacinto), tapped into her emotions and the Dark Side, force-choking Sol to death. It's also revealed that Vernestra Rwoh (Rebecca Henderson), who's been advising Sol on his mission and investigation, was Qimir's former master. Jacinto spoke about the fallout from the episode including his fight with Sol, preference in fighting style, and Qimir's relationship with Vernestra.

Manny Jacinto Reflects on The Acolyte Season Finale

When it came to how fast Jacinto and Jung-jae were moving during their fight during the finale, "I mean, it's definitely not easy. The dance background is incredibly helpful. It's so interesting because you want to move quick and you want to be powerful, but at the same time, you've got to remember that we're playing pretend," The Good Place star said. "So there are instances when JJ and I were going at it, and we were at a point where we would hurt ourselves. Not willingly, but it comes to a point where you're just going all out and you're putting all this anger into the movement that you forget that you have to hold back a little bit."

Jacinto referenced an earlier fight in the series. "Especially in scenes in episode 5 when JJ and I were going hand-to-hand combat, I remember coming out of that and having bruises on my wrist and forearms. So it's being mindful that this isn't supposed to be a real fight, but you need to have that intensity. So it is a fine line, but we also have our stunt doubles when you have the major sequences," he said. "In episode 8, when I was able to do the kick onto JJ, obviously I'm not doing that kick onto JJ — it's the stunt double. So in terms of that, we have our stunt team to help us out, and they'll take the big hits so that we can execute very powerfully and use our full force so that it projects on the screen."

As far as the actor's presence of bladed style, "The double blade is so cool because I'm Filipino and there's a Filipino martial arts called Arniz. And it's basically a martial art with two weapons, whether it be two sticks or a sword and a dagger," Jacinto said. "We didn't do it just because I was Filipino, it just was through a happenstance, but being able to shout out my culture through that martial art was very special to me. And so being able to do a two-handed fight scene was definitely a highlight."

Jacinto reflected on his discussion with The Acolyte creator Leslye Headland on how Qimir's relationship was with Vernestra compared to how he is with Osha. "Leslye and I talked about that specific one-second moment for a whole afternoon, possibly for a couple of days before we had to shoot that. And what we honed it down to was, again, it parallels very much the relationship that Osha has with Sol. It's a father-and-daughter relationship. So from my understanding and from my talks with Leslye about Vernestra and the Stranger, I think what we decided on was very much a mother-son relationship."

As far as what it could mean in the future, "It's possibly a dynamic to explore in season 2, but when you see him with that sense of fear, it's very much like a childlike fear that only one specific person can cause," Jacinto explained. "Only one specific person can give them that feeling, and that person is Vernestra. And why that's the case, I have no idea, and hopefully, we will hopefully explore that later on, but that's what we're alluding to, that there was this relationship that was very tender and very special between these two characters. And it was broken somehow in a very traumatic way. And hopefully, we can explore that in subsequent seasons. But yeah, there's a definite fear in his eyes when he realizes Vernestra is nearby."

For more, including how Jacinto talks about going in the buff, if Qimir's relationship with Osha will go beyond master-apprentice, confirming if the mysterious figure peeking outside the cave is Darth Plageuis, and what a season two could address, you can check out the complete interview.

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