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"Our world is exploding in different places right now, people's rights are disappearing, and Andor reflects that. [In the show] the Empire is taking over, and it feels like the same thing is happening in reality, too. I was impressed by Tony's social-realist intentions. He's created a whole new morality. It's very deep and humane—there is grief, mourning, hope, fear. It's not just primary colours here."
―Fiona Shaw, in a 2022 interview on Tony Gilroy's Andor[13]

Star Wars: Andor, alternatively titled Andor and later marketed as Andor: A Star Wars Story for the second season, is an American television series developed by Lucasfilm and released on Disney+. The series is a spy thriller starring Diego Luna, reprising his role as Cassian Andor from the 2016 film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The first season premiered in September 2022, and the second season premiered on April 22, 2025 with a new logo.

Official description

The Andor series will explore a new perspective from the Star Wars galaxy, focusing on Cassian Andor's journey to discover the difference he can make. The series brings forward the tale of the burgeoning rebellion against the Empire and how people and planets became involved. It's an era filled with danger, deception and intrigue where Cassian will embark on the path that is destined to turn him into a rebel hero.[6]

Development

Announcement

"Going back to the Star Wars universe is very special for me. I have so many memories of the great work we did together and the relationships I made throughout the journey. We have a fantastic adventure ahead of us, and this new exciting format will give us the chance to explore this character more deeply."
―Diego Luna, on reprising his role[1]

Talks for a television series focused on Cassian Jeron Andor, Diego Luna's character from the 2016 Star Wars Anthology film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, began before the Anthology film was released, though Luna had doubts that it would happen.[14] In February 2018, Disney CEO Bob Iger revealed that "a few" Star Wars live-action series were in development for Disney's streaming service.[15] The series was officially announced by Iger during a Disney quarterly earnings call on November 8, 2018.[1]

Andor Promotional Banner

A promotional banner for the series

On November 30, it was reported that The Americans executive producer Stephen Schiff was tapped to serve as a showrunner while Moana writer Jared Bush was revealed to have originated the project by writing a pilot script and a series bible.[16] According to Production Weekly, the series was scheduled to begin production in October 2019.[17] On July 11, 2019, Rick Famuyiwa was reported to be in talks to direct an undisclosed amount of episodes for the series, with filming scheduled to begin on October 7.[18] On October 15, 2019, Variety reported that Rogue One co-writer Tony Gilroy would be writing the pilot for the series in addition to directing multiple episodes.[19]

Lucasfilm's original concept for the series focused on the adventures of Andor and his reprogrammed KX-series security droid, K-2SO, who is played by Alan Tudyk. The two would have a Butch and Sundance style dynamic, with the two set to storm a citadel[20] in the series pilot.[21] Thanks to his work on Rogue One, Gilroy was consulted for work on the prequel series.[22] He thought the original pitch was "fine" but felt it was "very hard to sustain over a long haul,"[20] questioning what they could do after storming a citadel at the show's very start. Furthermore, he knew from his experience on Rogue One that K-2SO was a hard character to work with for long periods of time, which would make an entire series starring the character difficult, lest Lucasfilm wanted to have to find ways to hide him during many missions.[21] Without outright saying he was interested, Gilroy responded with what was later called "a long forensic manifesto" to Lucasfilm, outlining his issues with the pitch and putting forth his own ideas. Gilroy's idea was the story that would become Andor,[20] pitching a story that took Andor himself "back five years, to the worst night of his life." In the process, the series would see Andor evolve into the man first seen in Rogue One. According to Gilroy, Lucasfilm thought his pitch "looked a little insane,"[22] and he fully admitted the story he had in mind was "a crazy idea" and "radical."[20] In the end, however, Lucasfilm decided Gilroy's story was the route to go.[22]

Gilroy's concepts

Overview
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As far back as his pitch to Lucasfilm, Gilroy, as a student of history, wanted to imbue the series with themes of revolution, fascism, politics, rebellion, and the regular people caught up on those conflicts.[22] When Gilroy was asked about political resonances in Andor in November 2022, he stated that the series was written without contemporary politics in mind, drawing on historical revolutions simply as spontaneous events to drive the characters' adventures—"whatever contemporary resonance it has is usually in the eye of the beholder. Oppression is oppression."[23] In another November interview, Gilroy emphasized that his personal politics are "absolutely not important" to the series' themes and that Star Wars allows plentiful comparisons to history. As to the "age old question" of "who's a terrorist and who's a freedom fighter," Gilroy wanted every character to "speak for themselves" to make their motives believable and referred the idea of controversial revolutionaries to historical nation-building movements, naming the United States' Thomas Jefferson and South Africa Nelson Mandela and further listing the revolutions of France, Haiti, Russia and the Soviet Union, and the nation-building of Israel,[24] as well as the Palestinian liberation movement.[25] The season one finale took inspiration from the 1966 Gillo Pontecorvo film The Battle of Algiers, which was based on the Algerian War of Independence against the colonial French government.[26]

Gilroy also likened Andor's character of Luthen Rael as a start-up company founder[24] and, earlier in September, identified the senator and eventual Rebel Alliance leader Mon Mothma as a "figurehead of liberal democracy that will fail"[27]—he compared her to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in another interview in the same month.[28] Fiona Shaw, who played Maarva Andor and spoke in an interview released in August 2022, thought that Gilroy's story is a "scurrilous" and "social-realist" take on "the Trumpian world" that was "exploding in different places right now" with people's rights being taken away.[13]

Five season plan
"We were halfway through shooting season 1, coming through Covid, and the monumental size of the show, the effort, and everything else was just dawning on us. We realized that I didn't have enough calories to do it, and Diego's face couldn't take the timing, because it just takes too long to make it. We were saved by Disney saying, 'Okay, if you guys can figure out a way to do it, we're into it."
―Tony Gilroy, on shifting to two seasons[29]

Originally, Gilroy thought of Andor as a five season show[21] with around sixty episodes. It was during that planning phase that Stellan Skarsgård, who plays Rael, joined the series, but he asked Gilroy to kill off his character at the end of season two so he did not have to stay for the entire series.[30] According to Gilroy, the five season Andor had the same overall story progression as the final series.[21] In the end, he would decide to pivot to just two seasons and believes that he did not lose anything major.[31] Gilroy reflected that he had only planned out season one by the time he was heading into a writer's room.[21]

As recalled by Gilroy, the decision to shift to only two seasons came halfway through season one production as the scale of the production became clear to himself and the crew.[29] Luna feared that he would visibly age over the production of five seasons.[32] Furthermore, Gilroy believed that there was not enough story left in Andor for twelve episodes across four more seasons.[33] As a solution, Andor was shortened to two seasons, with the second season featuring four story arcs that each covered a year of the timeline up to Rogue One.[32] In doing so, Andor fulfilled its purpose of telling a five year story. According to Gilroy, Luna and himself came to the decision together while drinking scotch.[33] Luna, meanwhile, credits Gilroy for the "great idea."[32] Gilroy considers season two "a fascinating experiment."[29]

Production

Season one filming

AndorSeries

The original series logo revealed in 2020

On December 3, 2020,[34] Diego Luna confirmed that the series had started filming in London.[35] The title of Andor, as well as behind the scenes footage of the filming of the series, were unveiled on December 10, 2020 at a Disney investors meeting. Filming began in late November of 2020.[36][37] Although Alan Tudyk was initially announced to play K-2SO in the series,[38] he later clarified in January of 2021 that while production was underway, he was not going to appear in the first season. He did, however, expect to be brought into the fold in later seasons.[39]

The showrunners opted for practical environments, with scenes being shot at Pinewood Studios and on location. One scene was shot at Pitlochry, Scotland,[40] while exterior scenes for the Aldhani dam were also filmed in Scotland, at the Cruachan pumped storage hydro plant.[41] Ferrix was very expensive to create. Gilroy stated its "mental build" took two years.[42] Filming wrapped in September 2021.[43]

Season two production

Writers and Actors strikes

As part of the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike, Gilroy ceased all services on Andor and did not return to the set.[44] A few weeks before season two's UK shoot was to finish, Deadline Hollywood opened an article by stating that filming on season two would pause as a result of the 2023 SAG-AFTRA actors strike. Later in the piece, however, the article stated that, as per what Deadline had learned, the series was still being filmed at Pinewood Studios, but without actors who were part of SAG-AFTRA: American SAG-AFTRA actors had stopped work, as per the strike, while members of the British Equity union remained. According to the report, actors who were part of Equity were warned of potential legal action should they stop work in solidarity with the American union.[45]

Post-strikes
"That's been our attitude all the way through: not to be cynical, and to take it more seriously than anybody ever took it. Even while we’re changing—some people feel as though it's changing a lot—but even while we're changing the grammar of what you can do, we’re trying very rigorously to be more serious about this shit than anybody ever has been."
―Tony Gilroy, on making Andor[46]

In December 2023, Kathryn Hunter confirmed she would be returning as Eedy Karn for season two and shared some behind the scenes pictures via her Instagram page.[47] She later took down the post.[48] Andor was not present on Disney+'s 2024 release schedule shown to the public in December 2023.[49] In an interview with IO9, Andor star Stellan Skarsgård lit up with a smile upon a mention of Andor and promised he was satisfied with the ending, praising Gilroy's writing in specific.[50] In a February 2024 interview with GamesRadar+, Skarsgård stated season two would come in late 2024 or early 2025.[49]

Media

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Seasons

Season Episodes First airdate Last airdate
1
12[2]
September 21, 2022[3]
November 23, 2022[51]
2
12[2]
April 22, 2025[52]
May 13, 2025

Credits

By type
Cast Uncredited cast Crew Uncredited crew Special thanks

Cast

Uncredited cast

Crew

Sources

Notes and references

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 StarWars.com Cassian Andor Live-Action Series Announced on StarWars.com (backup link)
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 StarWars.com SWCA 2022: 20 Highlights from Lucasfilm's Studio Showcase on StarWars.com (backup link)
  3. 3.0 3.1 Andor | Official Trailer | Disney+ (2:25) on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link) (Posted on StarWars.com)
  4. StarWars.com First Andor A Star Wars Story Teaser Trailer and Poster Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 StarWars.com New Casting Announced for Cassian Andor Live-Action Series on StarWars.com (backup link)
  6. 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 6.22 Disney.com Andor Media Kit on Disney's official website (backup link)
  7. Here's When 'Andor' Season 2 Starts Filming [Exclusive] by Maggie Lovitt on Collider.com (November 4, 2022) (backup link archived on November 4, 2022)
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 'Andor's Season 2 Directors Revealed by Series Creator Tony Gilroy [Exclusive] by Maggie Lovitt on Collider.com (November 3, 2022) (backup link archived on November 3, 2022)
  9. 9.0 9.1 StarWars.com Future Lucasfilm Projects Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
  10. 10.0 10.1 'Succession' Composer Nicholas Britell Enters the 'Star Wars' Universe With Music for 'Andor' (EXCLUSIVE) by Jon Burlingame on Variety (May 27, 2022) (backup link archived on May 28, 2022)
  11. Star Wars: Andor — "Kassa"
  12. StarWars.com SWCA 2022: 20 Highlights from Lucasfilm's Studio Showcase on StarWars.com (backup link) states the second season of Andor will take place over the next four years with the final shot taking the place shortly before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Therefore, according to Star Wars: Timelines, Andor will end in 1 BBY.
  13. 13.0 13.1 Andor Is Star Wars' 'Scurrilous Take On The Trumpian World,' Says Fiona Shaw by Ben Travis on Empire Magazine (August 2, 2022) (backup link)
  14. Diego Luna Knows How to Play an Authentic Villain and Raise a Future Jedi at the Internet Movie Database (backup link)
  15. 'Star Wars' TV Series: Disney Developing "a Few" for Its Streaming Service by Lesley Goldberg, Aaron Couch on The Hollywood Reporter (February 6, 2018) (backup link archived on March 7, 2020)
  16. Disney+ 'Star Wars' Series Starring Diego Luna Taps Stephen Schiff As Showrunner by Nellie Andreeva on Deadline (November 30, 2018) (backup link archived on April 3, 2020)
  17. Rogue One Series Has A Filming Date by Steve Dunk on TheForce.net (December 31, 2018) (backup link archived on July 29, 2019)
  18. Rick Famuyiwa In Talks To Direct Episodes Of Cassian Andor Series (EXCLUSIVE) by Jacob Fisher on DiscussingFilm (July 11, 2019) (backup link archived on April 7, 2020)
  19. 'Rogue One' Writer Tony Gilroy Joins Cassian Andor 'Star Wars' Series at Disney Plus (EXCLUSIVE) by Joe Otterson on Variety (October 15, 2019) (backup link archived on April 3, 2020)
  20. 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 How ‘Andor' Became the First ‘Star Wars' TV Series for Grown-Ups: ‘I Wanted to Do It About Real People' by Vary, Adam B on Variety (backup link archived on August 24, 2022)
  21. 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 Andor Showrunner Tony Gilroy Addresses The Series' Most Controversial Storyline [Exclusive Interview] by Pearson, Ben on Slash Film (backup link archived on May 15, 2025)
  22. 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 Tony Gilroy’s journey from the Hudson Valley to a galaxy far, far away by Gregory James Wakeman on Times Union (backup link archived on May 19, 2025)
  23. 'Andor': Tony Gilroy's 'Star Wars' Series Wasn't Meant to be Political by Proma Khosla on IndieWire (November 9, 2022) (backup link archived on May 18, 2023)
  24. 24.0 24.1 ANDOR Showrunner Tony Gilroy on Season 1's Powerful Themes and the Future by Michael Walsh on Nerdist (November 23, 2022) (backup link archived on November 23, 2022)
  25. ‘Andor’: Tony Gilroy On Cassian’s Season One Finale Ultimatum; Teases Season 2 Filled With Rebel Gangsters & Outliers by Anthony D'Alessandro on Deadline (November 23, 2022) (backup link archived on January 3, 2025)
  26. Sharper Director Benjamin Caron Talks Twisty Apple Movie, Andor by Brian Davids on The Hollywood Reporter (March 20, 2023) (backup link archived on March 20, 2023)
  27. Who Is Mon Mothma? Star Wars Fans Are About To Be Shocked by Anthony Breznican on Vanity Fair (September 27, 2022) (backup link)
  28. Tony Gilroy Unpacks 'Andor' Ep. 4: Mon Mothma Is 'a Nancy Pelosi Character' by Proma Khosla on IndieWire (September 28, 2022) (backup link archived on May 7, 2023)
  29. 29.0 29.1 29.2 Andor showrunner says season 2's more fast-paced structure is a "fascinating experiment" that is "born out of desperation": "I don't know if anyone's ever done it before" by Russell, Bradley and Edwards, Richard on GamesRadar (March 26, 2025) (backup link archived on March 31, 2025)
  30. ‘Before Anyone Else Defines It, I’m Going to Define It’ Andor creator Tony Gilroy reflects on five years inside the Star Wars universe by VanArendonk, Kathryn on Vulture (May 16, 2025) (backup link archived on May 19, 2025)
  31. Andor S2 Q&A - Tony Gilroy - Season Recap on the Backstory Magazine YouTube channel (May 17, 2025) (backup link)
  32. 32.0 32.1 32.2 Star Wars: Andor star Diego Luna describes how they're fitting four seasons of planned story into the second (and final) season by apin-Bertone, Joshua on Pop Verse (July 24, 2024) (backup link archived on August 3, 2024)
  33. 33.0 33.1 Andor Was Originally Pitched As A Five-Season Story, So Why Are We Only Getting Two? by Bacon, Thomas on Screen Rant (November 21, 2024) (backup link archived on March 23, 2025)
  34. Jimmy Kimmel Live Schedule for the Week of 11/30/2020 on ABC Entertainment (backup link archived on December 4, 2020)
  35. Diego Luna on Star Wars Spin-Off, His Father Hating Christmas & Recreating The Princess Bride on the official Jimmy Kimmel Live YouTube channel (backup link)
  36. StarWars.com Future Lucasfilm Projects Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
  37. Sizzle Reel | Andor | Disney+ on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link) (Posted on StarWars.com)
  38. 38.0 38.1 StarWars.com The Galaxy Far, Far Away Just Got A Little Bigger… on StarWars.com (backup link)
  39. 'Rogue One' Disney+ Series Won't Include K-2SO, Alan Tudyk Confirms — At Least At First by Drew Taylor on Collider.com (January 20, 2021) (backup link archived on January 21, 2021)
  40. Andor Doesn't Use Star Wars' Volume Video Wall: 'We're Old-School,' Says Tony Gilroy — Exclusive Image by Ben Travis on Empire (January 8, 2022) (backup link archived on August 1, 2022)
  41. Ben Cruachan Inn (@bencruachaninn) on Instagram (post on September 2, 2022): "Lots of excitement with the release of #starwars series #Andor" (backup link)
  42. Andor: Inside the Making of a Perfect Star Wars Episode by Anthony Breznican on Vanity Fair (August 17, 2023) (backup link archived on October 24, 2023)
  43. Diego Luna Says 'Star Wars: Andor' Has Finished Shooting, And To Expect "Familiar Faces" by Rosy Cordero on Deadline (September 27, 2021) (backup link archived on September 27, 2021)
  44. Showrunner Tony Gilroy Ceases Producing Services on ‘Andor’ (Exclusive) on The Hollywood Reporter (May 9, 2023) (backup link archived on July 30, 2023)
  45. ‘Andor’ Season 2 Shoot To Be Cut Short Amid SAG-AFTRA Strike on Deadline (July 20, 2023) (backup link archived on July 31, 2023)
  46. Tony Gilroy Looks Back on Taking Shit Seriously in Andor on Gizmodo (backup link archived on March 20, 2025)
  47. Andor News (@newsandor) on Twitter (post): "Kathryn Hunter (Eedy Karn) via Instagram! #Andor" (backup link)
  48. Ethan (@sheevthan) on Twitter (post): "She deleted it she was prob not supposed to post that 😭" (backup link)
  49. 49.0 49.1 Andor star Stellan Skarsgård says the "Star Wars show for grown-ups" will end on a high and hints at season 2 release date by Emily Murray on GamesRadar (February 26, 2024) (backup link archived on February 26, 2024)
  50. Stellan Skarsgård Is Very Pleased With Andor Season 2 by Germain Lussier on Gizmodo (February 5, 2024) (backup link archived on February 5, 2024)
  51. Star Wars (@starwars) on Twitter (post): "This is what revolution looks like. Watch #Andor, a Star Wars Original Series, streaming only on @DisneyPlus September 21." (backup link)
  52. StarWars.com D23 Brasil 2024: Andor Premiere Date Revealed and Other Star Wars News on StarWars.com (backup link)
  53. 53.00 53.01 53.02 53.03 53.04 53.05 53.06 53.07 53.08 53.09 53.10 53.11 53.12 53.13 53.14 53.15 53.16 53.17 53.18 53.19 53.20 53.21 53.22 53.23 53.24 53.25 53.26 53.27 53.28 53.29 53.30 53.31 Star Wars: Andor — "Kassa" credits
  54. 54.00 54.01 54.02 54.03 54.04 54.05 54.06 54.07 54.08 54.09 54.10 54.11 54.12 54.13 Star Wars: Andor — "Announcement" credits
  55. 55.00 55.01 55.02 55.03 55.04 55.05 55.06 55.07 55.08 55.09 55.10 55.11 Star Wars: Andor — "That Would Be Me" credits
  56. Star Wars: Andor — "Reckoning" credits
  57. 57.00 57.01 57.02 57.03 57.04 57.05 57.06 57.07 57.08 57.09 57.10 57.11 57.12 57.13 57.14 57.15 57.16 57.17 57.18 Star Wars: Andor — "Aldhani" credits
  58. 58.0 58.1 58.2 58.3 58.4 58.5 58.6 Star Wars: Andor — "The Axe Forgets" credits
  59. 59.00 59.01 59.02 59.03 59.04 59.05 59.06 59.07 59.08 59.09 59.10 59.11 59.12 59.13 59.14 59.15 59.16 59.17 Star Wars: Andor — "The Eye"
  60. 60.00 60.01 60.02 60.03 60.04 60.05 60.06 60.07 60.08 60.09 60.10 60.11 60.12 60.13 60.14 60.15 60.16 60.17 60.18 60.19 60.20 60.21 60.22 60.23 60.24 60.25 60.26 60.27 60.28 60.29 60.30 60.31 60.32 60.33 60.34 60.35 60.36 60.37 60.38 60.39 60.40 Star Wars: Andor — "Narkina 5" credits
  61. Star Wars: Andor — "Nobody's Listening!" credits
  62. 62.0 62.1 62.2 62.3 62.4 Star Wars: Andor — "One Way Out" credits
  63. 63.0 63.1 63.2 63.3 63.4 63.5 63.6 63.7 63.8 Star Wars: Andor — "Daughter of Ferrix" credits
  64. 64.0 64.1 64.2 Star Wars: Andor — "Rix Road" credits
  65. StarWars.com D23 2024: All the Star Wars News from D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event on StarWars.com (backup link)
  66. David W. Collins (@DavidWCollins) on Twitter (post on October 19, 2022): ""#andorspoilers > > > > "Are you a part of it?" A gloriously disdainful shoretrooper VO performance by @SamWitwer #Andor #voiceover #LoopGroup"" (backup link)
  67. Sam Witwer (@SamWitwer) on Twitter (post on October 19, 2022): "Are you a part of it?" (backup link)
  68. 'Game of Thrones' Concept Artist Kieran Belshaw Reveals He Is Working on the Disney+ Cassian Andor Series by John Hoey on Star Wars News Net (June 12, 2019) (backup link archived on December 29, 2019)

External links