Full spoilers follow for The Acolyte episode six.
The Acolyte episode six, titled 'Teach/Corrupt', has landed on Disney Plus – and, with just two episodes left before it ends, we're still waiting for answers to some of its biggest mysteries.
Inevitably, the the lack of answers has led swathes of the Star Wars fanbase to theorize what lies in store for Sol, Osha, Mae, and other key players in that galaxy far, far away. After episode six's arrival, two new fan theories have emerged about Qimir/The Stranger, the enigmatic Dark Sider played by Manny Jacinto who's been the subject of other fan hypotheses, including one about The Acolyte's secret Sith Lord. And, in my opinion, one of them has enough evidence to suggest viewers could be right on the money.
This is your final warning: major spoilers follow immediately for Star Wars: The Acolyte's sixth episode. Potentially big spoilers for the series' final two episodes are also discussed.
Was Qimir trained by Jedi Master Vernestra Rwoh?
The first fan theory revolves around the former Jedi Padawan being trained by Master Vernestra Rwoh (Rebecca Ferguson).
There's evidence to indicate that this theory could be true, too. For one, Qimir/The Stranger tells Osha (Amandla Stenberg) that he was trained in the ways of the Jedi "a very long time ago". That suggests that he's a pretty old guy so, either he's got an exceptional beauty/moisturiser routine that keeps his skin looking incredibly youthful, or he's tapped into the Dark Side of the Force to maintain his good looks and defined musculature.
But I digress. Qimir potentially being trained by Vernestra certainly lines up with what we know about the Mirialan Jedi Master's past. First introduced in Star Wars' The High Republic literature, Vernestra was born in the year 248 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin). She joined the Jedi Order as a precocious child (per Empire magazine) and passed the Jedi Trials at a mere 15-years old. By the time The Acolyte's story begins, a century has elapsed since Vernestra passed said test, meaning she's around 115-years of age at this point on the Star Wars timeline. If Qimir is old as he teases, then, Vernestra could've not only brought Qimir into the Jedi fold, but also trained him herself.
Qimir was once a Jedi. Now he’s fallen to the dark side to “tip the scales.”Vernestra his master that gave him that scar with her lightsaber whip?! 👀 #TheAcolyte pic.twitter.com/BIb2ZwJ83hJuly 3, 2024
There's further proof about the duo's likely former Master-Padawan relationship. Qimir also tells Osha that, like her, "he lost everything", which initially proposes that they suffered similar family tragedies when they were kids. However, Qimir goes on to reveal that, just like Osha, he was kicked out of the Jedi Order – a fateful decision that made him turn to the Dark Side.
What does this have to do with Vernestra? At different points in 'Teach/Corrupt', we see a large scar on Qimir's back; a stigmata he declines to come clean to Osha about. The curved and pocked nature of said physical injury, though, implies that it was the result of a lightsaber strike – and not a normal Jedi weapon, either. How about, say, a lightsaber whip-style blade, which just so happens to be the iconic, personalized weapon of one Vernestra Rwoh?
I, for one, then, think we'll learn that Qimir was Vernestra's Padawan in episode seven or eight – and I'm not the only one who does, either. A cursor glance at sub-Reddits, such as the official Star Wars Reddit and Star Wars Leaks Reddit pages, shows many viewers are convinced about this theory, with users including rbasara, T3V_920, and aLittleDoober agreeing as much.
The same is true on ResetEra and X/Twitter, with people like Starphanluke, Lifejumper, and andorisms pointing out this is likely the case. In short: don't be surprised if we get such a reveal at some point in the next two weeks.
Is Qimir/The Stranger using The Last Jedi's Ahch-To as his base of operations?
As for the second fan theory, audiences think the "unknown planet" that Qimir and Osha are on is one we first visited in divisive film Star Wars: The Last Jedi: Ahch-To, a world mostly covered in water with numerous rocky islands that was also the birthplace of the Jedi Order.
Now, it's a strange decision to label this place as an "unknown planet" if we've already seen Ahch-To before. However, that may be a creative choice on showrunner Leslye Headland's part to try and throw off viewers ahead of a grand reveal in one of The Acolyte's final two chapters. And, let's be honest, it's a world that not only looks very similar to Ahch-To, but also makes a lot of sense as a hideout for a Dark Side wielder like Qimir. After all, the birthplace of the Jedi Order would be the last place that any Light Side users would look for an alleged Sith Lord, thus making it the perfect sanctuary.
Comment from r/StarWars
Lots of fans think this lines up well, too. On Reddit, EverGlow89 wrote: "Unknown planet, my ass. That's Ahch-To", to which FazbearADULTEntBS added: "Imagine if the Sith have hidden on Ahch-To for the last thousand years. Biding their time at the first Jedi temple…".
Plenty of RestEra users agree with their Reddit counterparts. Starphanluke said: "Are they on Ach-To? WHY would they choose such a familiar-looking location if not that", before Ryan. chimed in with: "So, the planet that Qimir is on is totally Ahch-To. Same biome, not going out of the way name it, Osha's even wearing similar clothes to Rey when she's training with Luke. The entire episode from Osha's PoV was very Last Jedi like". Tavernade also wrote: "Thrilled that we're seemingly on Ahch-To. Were those baby green milk cows? They seem to have the same heads", to which Mewzard agreed, adding: "I had a vibe that it might be Ahch-To at a glance, but I didn't want to commit to it at first."
Comment from r/StarWarsLeaks
Other fans, though, aren't convinced we revisited Ahch-To. Other Redditors, including Xeta1 (see above) and DiamondFireYT, plus X/Twitter users like Tom Chansky, think we actually saw a deep-cut Star Wars planet called Bal'demnic, which has a similar topography to Ahch-To. It's also rich in the lightsaber/kyber crystal-disrupting substance known as Cortosis, which Qimir fashions his helmet and wrist braces out of. We even see a vein-like ore of Cortosis in Qimir's hideout, which Osha looks at before she places the Cortosis headgear on her own head. It seems, then, that it was Bal'demnic, not Ahch-To, that we saw in 'Teach/Corrupt'.
Either way, I'm sure we'll learn if one or both of these fan theories are correct in The Acolyte's last two entries. And hey, if we don't, at least Sol will finally get around to telling us the truth about what happened on Brendok. It's only taken him three episodes...
