Exclusive: The Acolyte’s Lee Jung-jae imagined one Jedi Master was his character's Padawan

lee jung jae star wars the acolyte
Acolyte star imagined Jedi Master as his PadawanDisney+

The Acolyte star Lee Jung-jae has detailed his preparation for the role of Sol, revealing that he imagined that an iconic Jedi Master was his character’s Padawan.

The upcoming Disney+ series and Star Wars spin-off will focus on Sol, a Jedi Master, and his former Padawan learner Osha (Amandla Stenberg), with the pair teaming up to solve a series of crimes.

Ahead of the show’s launch on Tuesday (June 4), Lee spoke exclusively with Digital Spy about his role, revealing that he envisaged his character being trained by Liam Neeson's Qui-Gon Jinn when preparing for his part.

liam neeson as qui gon jinn in star wars the phantom menace
20th Century Studios

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“In terms of preparing for the role I went and watched a lot of Star Wars shows and films of the past, studying the actors who have given great performances as Jedi masters,” he recalled. “Of all the performances, I especially got inspiration from Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn.

“I think it was very important to represent that the Jedi philosophy maintains through all these different ages, so I almost imagined Qui-Gon as Master Sol’s Padawan, forming that connection between the two of them and maintaining that Jedi philosophy between generations.”

Lee, who shot to international fame for his role on Squid Game, also teased details of Sol’s character, explaining that the character’s compassion for members of his community makes the Jedi Master “unique.”

lee jung jae star wars the acolyte
Disney+

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“He is someone who sacrifices a lot to maintain peace and harmony within his community,” remarked Lee. “I think this type of person is very rare to meet in real life. Of course you hear about them in the news, but I think this is what makes Master Sol unique.”

The Acolyte, which has been created by Leslye Headland, sees Stenberg also play the role of Osha’s twin sister Mae, with the supporting cast including Carrie-Anne Moss, Jodie Turner-Smith, Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen.

The Acolyte is streaming exclusively on Disney+ from June 5.

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