The Acolyte's Charlie Barnett Faces Backlash For Star Wars Confusion

The Acolyte actor Charlie Barnett is facing backlash from Star Wars fans online, after appearing to confuse Luke and Anakin Skywalker. During a press tour for the show, which is the latest installment in the Star Wars universe, the 36-year-old referred to "Anakin blowing up the Death Star," upsetting die-hard fans of the sci-fi saga. In the first movie in the series, Star Wars: A New Hope (1977), Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker destroys the super weapon with the help of the Rebel Alliance.

The mix-up occurred during a recent press day with Barnett and his co-stars Dafne Keen and Rebecca Henderson, ahead of The Acolyte's June 4 release on Disney Plus. The actor, who plays Jedi Knight Yord Fandar, was discussing the morally ambiguous messaging of the show, which explores the line between good and evil. In a snippet of one interview that went viral on social media, Barnett said: "Well Anakin just blew up a whole Death Star, how many people have done that?"

This comment led to confused looks from Keen and Henderson. After being shared to X, formerly Twitter, by user Hot Spot (@HotSpotHotSpot) on June 6, the moment went viral, receiving over 3.7 million views. Barnett made the mistake a second time during another interview, further fueling the ire of the fandom. Despite the backlash, some fans defended Barnett, noting that actors do not always need to be experts in the source material.

After being shared to TikTok by user Kev (movie.review_man.man.man), the second clip also went viral, racking up 71,000 likes. A number of fans were annoyed by the mistake, with TikTok user Real writing: "The comment about Anakin blowing up the Death Star hurt." Others expressed their frustration, saying that actors should be more familiar with the material they are working with.

However, some users defended Barnett, suggesting that passing a geek test is not part of their job. "You guys know these are actors, right?" one user pointed out. As the debate continues, it is clear that fans of the franchise care deeply about its lore and characters, highlighting the passion that the Star Wars universe inspires.