What We Know So Far About 'Star Wars: Andor'

The upcoming Star Wars series Andor is set to start streaming on August 31, 2022 on Disney+. Here are what we know and maybe a few things that we don't know yet about this much-anticipated series:

As the title suggests, the show will center around the titular Cassian Andor, the Rebel operative who, along with Jyn Erso and others, played a pivotal role in stealing the plans for the Death Star prior to the events of A New Hope. The show is described as being about Cassian's life on his home planet and after joining the Rebel Alliance. It will also depict how the Galactic Empire moves to brutally and swiftly reshape the galaxy following its formation in the years following Revenge of the Sith and how their tactics affect worlds and their cultures. Diego Luna reportedly was able to use some of the backstory that he developed during the making of Rogue One to help flesh out his character.

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This will reportedly be a two-season show, with the first season mostly delving into Cassian's background, growing up among the brutal oppression of the Galactic Empire and the events that led to his eventual recruitment into the Rebel Alliance. The second season, which will reportedly begin shooting in November 2022, will focus on his involvement with the Rebel Alliance, leading right up to the events of Rogue One. Showrunner and executive producer Tony Gilroy has suggested that the audience looks at the second season as the second half of a novel as opposed to just another season of a show.

Andor is set (sans flashbacks to Cassian's youth) approximately five years prior to Rogue One and A New Hope and will feature characters important to the Rebel Alliance such as Mon Mothma, with Genevieve O'Reilly reprising her role as the leader of the Rebel Alliance as featured in Rogue One and in deleted scenes from Revenge of the Sith.

Likewise, Diego Luna will reprise his role from Rogue One as the titular character in the series. Given that it shares the same time frame as other series such as Star Wars Rebels, there could be several opportunities for live-action appearances by characters featured in that series or in other Star Wars projects set around the same time period. There are speculations that Ahsoka Tano, who led the leader of the Rebel Alliance intelligence network in Star Wars Rebels under the code name “Fulcrum”, could be making an appearance.

The series is reportedly going to be a spy thriller series set within the Star Wars universe. Appropriately, Andor director Tony Gilroy also directed the first four Bourne Identity movies and co-wrote Rogue One. Like Rogue One, the show will focus on the darker underbelly of the Rebel Alliance and some of its more morally dubious actions while combatting the evil Galactic Empire. This may pave the way for the return of infamous Star Wars characters such as Saw Guerrera and his Partisans, who used more extreme tactics in their fight against the Empire and had been disavowed from the rest of the Rebel Alliance.

We know a great deal about who has been cast so far in Andor although not necessarily who they will portray. However, Alan Tudyk, who voiced the Cassian’s quirky re-programmed Imperial Security Droid K2-S0 in Rogue One, had previously stated that he would not be in the first season of Andor. With all the secrecy surrounding the filming of the series, it is possible that Tudyk’s involvement is simply being kept under wraps for a surprise appearance during the first season. Perhaps, he will not appear until the second season when Andor’s character is more firmly established as an active member of the Rebel Alliance. Since the second season of Andor will lead up to the events of Rogue One, it is inconceivable that they would not introduce K2-S0 for an audience-pleasing moment at some point in the series. After all, he is destined to be captured and reprogrammed by the Rebels to assist in their espionage activities.

As with every Star Wars live-action series to date, we know that Disney Lucasfilm likes to play it close to the chest. Whatever we think we already know about the series is likely only the tip of a very large iceberg. I suspect that Disney Lucasfilm has eye-popping and jaw-dropping moments planned for the audience that we can't even imagine yet. So, be prepared for the excitement and intrigue of Andor starting August 31st only on Disney+.

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Written By Mara Butler

Source(s): Nerdist, Vanity Fair, Teen Kids News, Syfy

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