Male 'Star Wars' fans attack women, Kathleen Kennedy says ahead of latest woke series 'The Acolyte'

Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy once again alienated "Star Wars" fans after stating that female employees of the franchise sometimes suffer from personal attacks simply due the fact that the fan base is predominantly male.

Kennedy was discussing new series "The Acolyte," the first show from the franchise to be created by a woman. Leslye Headland, typically known as a film director, has planned new, major female characters for the franchise. This is made possible by creating a storyline that takes place long before the earliest (chronologically) film in the franchise, "Episode 1: The Phantom Menace."

Ahead of the series release, Headland and Kennedy spoke to the New York Times, with the studio president trying to get ahead of any criticism her new director may face.

"My belief is that storytelling does need to be representative of all people," Kennedy said. "That's an easy decision for me."

The new show certainly is following the studio's new woman-first mantra, which features several new, prominent female Jedi while including actress Carrie-Anne Moss as the new "most powerful Jedi in the room" who practices a form of Kung-Fu. This was directly inspired by Moss' character in "The Matrix" franchise.

'Anyone who engages in bigotry, racism or hate speech … I don't consider a fan.'

Kennedy, keeping up with her insistence of overloading movies with unnecessary, woke characters, once again targeted male "Star Wars" fans for taking issue with her productions.

"Operating within these giant franchises now, with social media and the level of expectation — it’s terrifying," she said. "I think Leslye has struggled a little bit with it. I think a lot of the women who step into 'Star Wars' struggle with this a bit more. Because of the fan base being so male dominated, they sometimes get attacked in ways that can be quite personal."

"As a fan myself, I know how frustrating some 'Star Wars' storytelling in the past has been. I've felt it myself," she continued. "I stand by my empathy for 'Star Wars' fans. But I want to be clear. Anyone who engages in bigotry, racism or hate speech … I don't consider a fan," she added.

Kennedy was parodied by "South Park" in late 2023 for wanting to "put a chick" in every Disney project and "make it lame and gay," simply as an effort to pander. Despite her being reportedly upset by her portrayal, Kennedy has gone full speed ahead with more woke projects.

Headland being tapped to be showrunner was the second major announcement by Lucasfilm in recent months that involved putting a woman at the forefront of a major "Star Wars" production.

In early 2024, Pakistani-Canadian director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy described her female-focused Jedi movie as something "very special."

"It's about time that we had a woman come forward to shape a story in a galaxy far, far away," she said, citing that it was justified because of the current year.

As for Headland, Blaze TV's Lauren Chen called her "fully unprepared and unqualified to be heading up a 'Star War'' project.”

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