Star Wars as introduced the Hutts as a threat in The High Republic, and they could go on to be major villains in the upcoming Disney+ TV show The Acolyte. In Claudia Gray’s Into the Dark, the Hutts emerge as a shadow power, manipulating events from the background in their favor while never actually appearing in the book. Their machinations behind the scenes speak to the incredible power the crime syndicate is amassing during the High Republic Era, making them a looming threat by the time of the still-mysterious story of The Acolyte.
The novel shows the Hutts approaching a local syndicate, the Directorate, to do the dirty work of destabilizing the governments of two neighboring planets. The Republic is still expanding at this time, but these planets have resisted membership. A Jedi team comes to their aid, hopeful that a successful mission will show the advantages of joining the Republic, but they walk right into the Directorate’s trap. The Jedi ultimately prevail, defeating the Directorate, which turns out to be exactly what the Hutts wanted. The Directorate’s fall cleared their way to move into that system personally. While the Hutts are not the most powerful villains of the High Republic, they are also not villains to be ignored.
If the Hutts are have amassed enough power to turn the Republic and the Directorate against each other early in the High Republic, they could be a major antagonist by the time of The Acolyte. Even with more limited reach under the Empire, Jabba the Hutt was able to interfere with Luke, Leia, and Han’s plans on several occasions in the original Star Wars trilogy. The Hutts have long ruled with their cartel in the Outer Rim, and the Republic’s expansion into that region during the High Republic sets the Jedi and the Hutts on a collision course that could pay off in The Acolyte. The Republic’s new Starlight Beacon has expanded their reach into the Outer Rim, and it’s only a matter of time before the Jedi find themselves in conflict with the Hutts.
While The Acolyte is not directly connected to the High Republic books, the Hutts are a natural choice to threaten the Republic’s prospering stability. Their power in the Outer Rim is a difficult problem to get rid of, as their crime syndicate stretches back into history to the Old Republic. The influence of their organization survived for thousands of years, not even completely dying out with Jabba the Hutt’s death at Leia’s hands. The Hutts have held a major role in almost every era of Star Wars, and fans likely have not seen the last of them. The Hutt syndicate even comes into play years after Jabba’s death in The Mandalorian and The Book of the Boba Fett, and The Acolyte is now also set up to involve them.
The Acolyte’s conflicts are still shrouded in secrecy, but if the Hutt’s actions in Into the Dark are any indication, they may be a powerful force for the Jedi to contend with. Even if the Republic and the Jedi do not find themselves directly coming up against the Hutts, they are still likely to deal with the Hutts’ influence on the galaxy around them. It’s unclear exactly how The Acolyte might involve them in its story, but the Hutts and their position of power in the galaxy are a looming threat in its background.
Key Release Dates
Rogue Squadron
Release Date:2023-12-22
