***** THE ACOLYTE Show Discussion (see note inside) Thread *****

166,709 Views | 1974 Replies | Last: 1 mo ago by Sea Speed
Quad Dog
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Same applied to the Marvel Disney+ shows. I thought all of them were the wrong length. Depending on the show they should have been much longer series or a movie or two. I think Loki might be the only D+ show that nailed it's length.
YNWA_AG
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CheeseSndwch
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The guy playing Mog is/was such a bad actor that I thought he must be a celebrity cameo of someone I just didn't know, but after looking him up (Harry Trevaldwyn) it appears he has a comedic background with very few film credits.

Mog and the Green Jedi sharing screen time was just a complete train wreck.

Did the show runners just cast their friends? Even with blatant Hollywood accounting there is no reason this show should cost $22M per episode.
Ag Since 83
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Oh boy this show

redline248
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I didn't even know that option existed. Lmao
FL_Ag1998
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Good lord, even I'm getting a little turned on by that and my lightsaber doesn't swing that way!
The Porkchop Express
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CheeseSndwch said:

The guy playing Mog is/was such a bad actor that I thought he must be a celebrity cameo of someone I just didn't know, but after looking him up (Harry Trevaldwyn) it appears he has a comedic background with very few film credits.

Mog and the Green Jedi sharing screen time was just a complete train wreck.

Did the show runners just cast their friends? Even with blatant Hollywood accounting there is no reason this show should cost $22M per episode.


Every production ever casts friends. Ever seen an Adam Sandler movie?
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AgfromHOU
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If true, I feel like it'll be one of those "and you totally redeemed yourself!" moments.
CheeseSndwch
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The Porkchop Express said:

CheeseSndwch said:

The guy playing Mog is/was such a bad actor that I thought he must be a celebrity cameo of someone I just didn't know, but after looking him up (Harry Trevaldwyn) it appears he has a comedic background with very few film credits.

Mog and the Green Jedi sharing screen time was just a complete train wreck.

Did the show runners just cast their friends? Even with blatant Hollywood accounting there is no reason this show should cost $22M per episode.


Every production ever casts friends. Ever seen an Adam Sandler movie?

I've never seen an Adam Sandler movie with a $180M budget, and I think it's pretty disingenuous to use Adam Sandler as an example of this, considering he is publicly known for casting his friends, to defend some seriously flawed production choices.
Cliff.Booth
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Ag Since 83 said:

Oh boy this show




I know Leslye claims to be a SW mega fan, but based on the feel of Acolyte I think it's obvious she's a mega fan of Twilight. This show feels like The Force Awakens and Twilight had a baby that was meant for the CW instead of a streaming platform.
The Porkchop Express
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CheeseSndwch said:

The Porkchop Express said:

CheeseSndwch said:

The guy playing Mog is/was such a bad actor that I thought he must be a celebrity cameo of someone I just didn't know, but after looking him up (Harry Trevaldwyn) it appears he has a comedic background with very few film credits.

Mog and the Green Jedi sharing screen time was just a complete train wreck.

Did the show runners just cast their friends? Even with blatant Hollywood accounting there is no reason this show should cost $22M per episode.


Every production ever casts friends. Ever seen an Adam Sandler movie?

I've never seen an Adam Sandler movie with a $180M budget, and I think it's pretty disingenuous to use Adam Sandler as an example of this, considering he is publicly known for casting his friends, to defend some seriously flawed production choices.


Ok. Well I guess my answer is this is a pretty standard star wars TV practice that has extended across every series excepting andor, over the last 5 years. So if the Acolyte is your first start wars series, I understand the disappointment but if not , it's obviously something they like doing. Certainly something to criticize, but nothing you shouldn't have seen coming after casting like Ewan McGregors wife if Ahsoka or that terrible comedian lady in mando. The guy who played Yord was in the creator's other show as well
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The Porkchop Express
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Cliff.Booth said:

Ag Since 83 said:

Oh boy this show




I know Leslye claims to be a SW mega fan, but based on the feel of Acolyte I think it's obvious she's a mega fan of Twilight. This show feels like The Force Awakens and Twilight had a baby that was meant for the CW instead of a streaming platform.


I'm penciling you in as the board Twilight expert for any questions going forward.
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LB12Diamond
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Cannot believe this show cost that much to make. Especially with the episodes being around 30 minutes.
FL_Ag1998
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Are we circling back to complaining about the budget again? I mean, I've certainly noted it before myself but I feel like that's a dead horse at this point.
ABATTBQ11
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FL_Ag1998 said:

Are we circling back to complaining about the budget again? I mean, I've certainly noted it before myself but I feel like that's a dead horse at this point.


I think it gets worse and thus more prevalent the more you watch it.
Quad Dog
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Qimir specifically said he was looking for the power of two
Cliff.Booth
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The Porkchop Express said:

Cliff.Booth said:

Ag Since 83 said:

Oh boy this show




I know Leslye claims to be a SW mega fan, but based on the feel of Acolyte I think it's obvious she's a mega fan of Twilight. This show feels like The Force Awakens and Twilight had a baby that was meant for the CW instead of a streaming platform.


I'm penciling you in as the board Twilight expert for any questions going forward.


My emo niece was the expert. I was simply the guy not in control of the remote.
Cliff.Booth
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CheeseSndwch said:

The Porkchop Express said:

CheeseSndwch said:

The guy playing Mog is/was such a bad actor that I thought he must be a celebrity cameo of someone I just didn't know, but after looking him up (Harry Trevaldwyn) it appears he has a comedic background with very few film credits.

Mog and the Green Jedi sharing screen time was just a complete train wreck.

Did the show runners just cast their friends? Even with blatant Hollywood accounting there is no reason this show should cost $22M per episode.


Every production ever casts friends. Ever seen an Adam Sandler movie?

I've never seen an Adam Sandler movie with a $180M budget, and I think it's pretty disingenuous to use Adam Sandler as an example of this, considering he is publicly known for casting his friends, to defend some seriously flawed production choices.


This. A guy casting his friends to play awkward roles in comedies geared toward 19 year old frat dudes, vs $180 million productions by a director who takes herself really seriously and wants us to as well. The more you watch the crazier it seems that LF's version of TC wasn't enabled to be like....Leslye, this is **** and we are not making it.
ABATTBQ11
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Came across this old tweet:



Having seen the first four episodes now, I think it is safe to say we know for certain where the problem is with Disney SW...
The Porkchop Express
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So what would be an acceptable budget for you guys? Given the caveat that nobody except tc, nobody knows anything about how much anything in the production of a TV series costs.

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Ag Since 83
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Reminds me of this from An Evening with Kevin Smith:

Quote:


We pitched the movie to Miramax, gave them the script...and they were like, "This is great. Who do you wanna put in it?"

I was like, "I wrote it for Ben Affleck, Jason Lee, Joey Lauren Adams."

And the exec was like, "Oh, no. We have to put celebrities in it. We were thinking Drew Barrymore, Jon Stewart, David Schwimmer."

And I was like, "Why? Where'd you get that grouping from? Did you just pick those three off the top of your head?"

They'd had deals with them. I said, "I wanna make it with my people."

And the exec said words I will never forget: "Kevin, it's not about making a movie with your friends."

I was like, "Really?" That's been the whole point of my career.

Of course, I feel like making a Star Wars show is probably different than Chasing Amy.
justnobody79
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Cliff.Booth said:

Ag Since 83 said:

Oh boy this show




I know Leslye claims to be a SW mega fan, but based on the feel of Acolyte I think it's obvious she's a mega fan of Twilight. This show feels like The Force Awakens and Twilight had a baby that was meant for the CW instead of a streaming platform.
she seems like she would be a fan of the Last Jedi
Cliff.Booth
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No one outside of that industry on the production side knows what X amount of money can get you, but all SW fans know that with Disney money and resources it shouldn't look and feel like Scifi channel stuff. I suspect this is because their statement hire didn't know how to make the most of what was offered to her to make it look quality. This is why you want big productions like this in experienced hands. Guessing TC will call me an idiot for saying that, but the proof is in the pudding.
concac
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Everything that has happened in 6 episodes could've been condensed into 2 episodes and nothing would've been lost.

I don't hate the show but I don't even look forward to the next episode. It's like, "Hope something cool happens but if not, at least it's closer to the season finale."
The Porkchop Express
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Cliff.Booth said:

No one outside of that industry on the production side knows what X amount of money can get you, but all SW fans know that with Disney money and resources it shouldn't look and feel like Scifi channel stuff. I suspect this is because their statement hire didn't know how to make the most of what was offered to her to make it look quality. This is why you want big productions like this in experienced hands. Guessing TC will call me an idiot for saying that, but the proof is in the pudding.


We've been through the territory of you saying all Star Wars fans without that being realistic. If you know $180 million is too much, what is acceptable? It seems like a weird hill to die on given none of it is your money.
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FL_Ag1998
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Man Cliff, missed your commentary last week. Sure am glad to have you back contributing to this thread.
Definitely Not A Cop
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The Porkchop Express said:

Cliff.Booth said:

Ag Since 83 said:

Oh boy this show




I know Leslye claims to be a SW mega fan, but based on the feel of Acolyte I think it's obvious she's a mega fan of Twilight. This show feels like The Force Awakens and Twilight had a baby that was meant for the CW instead of a streaming platform.


I'm penciling you in as the board Twilight expert for any questions going forward.



Cliff?


ABATTBQ11
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The Porkchop Express said:

So what would be an acceptable budget for you guys? Given the caveat that nobody except tc, nobody knows anything about how much anything in the production of a TV series costs.




Like $110-$120 million? I think we're going to have a total runtime of 270-300 minutes, which means this will end up costing maybe $600k-$660k per minute.

For comparison:

Andor was $250 million, but it had a much longer 470 minute runtime (from what I've found, some say it's even longer). That's only $532k per minute, and I think we can all are that Andor has become the gold standard in writing and visuals for SW.

Kenobi was only like $90 million, and it had a runtime of like 360 minutes (again, I might be wrong). That's only like $250k per minute.

With what we've seen so far, I think $400k per minute isn't unrealistic. It might even be generous. That puts it around $110-$120 million overall if the total runtime is where I think it ends up. I just don't see how this show costs so much more per minute to make than one it's comparable to and even more than one that is objectively better in every regard.
justnobody79
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obviously not a 1:1 exact comparison but House of the Dragon has roughly the same budget but twice the run length
The Porkchop Express
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I appreciate you coming up with a real answer!
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redline248
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I am not going to spend the time to dig, but I'm going to guess that all the people working on it, writers, editors, fx crew, etc, are not the most experienced people in the industry. Perhaps they don't know how to squeeze every last bit of quality out of the money. Also, inflation is a real thing, and I doubt the tv/movie making industry is immune to it.
The Porkchop Express
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justnobody79 said:

obviously not a 1:1 exact comparison but House of the Dragon has roughly the same budget but twice the run length
I have to believe sets, costumes, and special effects are a big part of a budget. HOTD is reusing, at a guess, 80% of the sets, 80% of the same costumes, and has the dragon models already built for CGI, so no original work there.

TC - if you get on later - can you give some insight on what a writing/production budget looks like from an existing work vs. an original work? I don't know if there is a difference, but it seems at least somewhat inherently easier to write a script from source material that already exists in pretty heavy detail vs. something completely original.

Just as a caveat, some of the Acolyte definitely has looked a little "Star Trek Enterprise" to me but I still can't figure out why people watching the show are mad about the budget.

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ABATTBQ11
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The Porkchop Express said:

I appreciate you coming up with a real answer!


I try...

To understand the problem with the budget, you have to understand how people process disappointment and surprise. The human brain doesn't process them directly, but in relation to prior expectations. The greater the deviation between what's observed and what was expected, the greater the joy/disappointment. Knowing beforehand that the show had such a huge budget, I think people expected something much closer to Andor than Kenobi, and that was totally justified considering the cost per minute of runtime. Instead, we got something comparable to Kenobi for the cost of Andor.

TLDR, the disappointment is high because a certain inflated expectation was set by the budget.
MASAXET
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Well maybe I'm the exception, but I'm enjoying it. And I thought this was a really intriguing episode. Yes, the pacing isn't what I want but the story is interesting to me. And I think Sol and Quimir are really intriguing and the actors have done a great job in the roles. The Osha / Quimir interactions are super interesting to me.
ABATTBQ11
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But did they keep the sets and costumes for 3 years after the final season of GoT?
 
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