Toxic Fandom Keeps Winning
Commentary: Can the Best of Star Wars Survive the Worst of Its Fans?
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) August 23, 2024
Before Star Wars can have another successful show, some vocal parts of fandom have to reckon with what they really want out of the franchise.
More: https://t.co/fNN7a2uyJI pic.twitter.com/PNpb6at4KN
The linked Rolling Stone commentary is correct about the toxic fans of Star Wars. People like the late Shafiqah Hudson have written about this in the past. The sci-fi and fantasy genres in particular retain a unique ability to attract some of the most toxic fans around. At just 25 years old, Amandla Stenberg has been acting long enough to be attacked by toxic fans of 2 different series. Fans who supposedly love The Hunger Games somehow missed that Rue, the character she played when she was 14(!) was written by the author of the books as black.
Regardless of what is said about The Acolyte and its budget being the "real" reason for its cancellation, the premature end of the show cannot be separated from the racism and review-bombing the show received--and Disney's previous capitulations to its worst fans.