Elon Musk has slammed Lucafilm president Kathleen Kennedy for endangering the “Star Wars” franchise by pushing “conscious” propaganda in the latest spin-off “The Acolyte,” which has drawn criticism because its main characters were fathered by “lesbian space witches” as part of the story.
“It’s deadlier than the Death Star!” Musk wrote in response to a post on X that described Kennedy as a “fan of the franchise” along with other Empire death machines.
Kennedy, who has been president of Lucasfilm since Disney purchased the film and production company founded by “Star Wars” creator George Lucas in 2012, has defended her decision to tap Leslye Headland to direct “The Acolyte,” currently streaming on Disney+.
Lucas, who launched the storied franchise before selling his company to Disney for $4 billion, has largely stayed away from any involvement in any of the “Star Wars” spin-off series.
Headland, the first woman to create a TV series for the franchise, has sought to make “The Acolyte” more diverse by casting minority actors, including Amandla Stenberg, who identified as nonbinary and gay, and Korean star Lee Jung-jae.
The narrative of “The Acolyte” that has caused a stir involves powerful witches belonging to an all-female coven — led by Mother Aniseya, played by actress Jodie Turner-Smith — using the Force to create female offspring that star in the twin main characters, played by Amandla Stenberg.
Kennedy, whose producing credits include “ET” and the “Jurassic Park” series, was also criticized by Musk for being “intolerant of men.”
She said supporting Headland was “an easy decision for me.”
Kennedy said it was “terrifying” to receive a backlash from the “male-dominated” fan base that has reacted negatively to recent “Star Wars” films and television series that promote female stars, including Daisy Ridley, who played Rey in “The Force Awakens” sequel trilogy, “The Last Jedi” and “The Rise of Skywalker.”
Disney has come under fire in recent years for introducing “conscious” content to appeal to a wider audience.
Last year, “South Park,” the animated satire aired on cable channel Comedy Central, mocked Disney for “pandering” to audiences by promoting diversity in franchises like “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones.”
In an episode of “South Park” titled “Joining the Panderverse,” the show took aim at Kennedy, who was accused of ordering producers of her franchise projects to “put a girl in there” and “make her lame and gay!”
In 2021, Disney fired actress Gina Carano, star of the “Star Wars” spin-off series “The Mandalorian,” after a series of social media posts, including one that compared the political climate in the United States to the period of Nazi Germany.
Musk, the Tesla boss who has been critical of Disney, announced earlier this year that he supported Carano’s lawsuit against the company.
Carano, the former MMA star who played Cara Dune in the spin-off, alleged she was fired from the series because she espoused conservative views.
She is asking the court to order Disney’s Lucasfilm unit to reinstate her and is seeking compensatory damages of up to $75,000 plus emotional distress and punitive damages to be determined at trial.
