Andor Showrunner Hints At “Legacy Character” Recasts In Star Wars’ New TV Show

Andor

showrunner Tony Gilroy has hinted at “legacy character” recasts in season 2. The first season of Andor was unlike anything else in Star Wars, eschewing Easter eggs in favor of character arcs. But Andor season 2 takes a very different approach, because it is moving to a part of the timeline that’s much more well-established. We already know the show will end immediately before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, with Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor leaving Yavin 4 for the fateful mission that will uncover the existence of the Death Star.

Speaking to THR, Tony Gilroy admitted he hoped to populate the Rebel base with familiar characters – but they had to forego some cameos and even recast. “Legacy characters are really tricky to bring back,” Gilroy explained. “They’re very, very expensive. A lot of times, their schedules don’t work out. There’s probably a couple people that we wanted to have in Yavin at the end, who are in the beginning of Rogue, but we just couldn’t get them because they were busy.“

Why Andor Has Struggled With Some Cameos

Gilroy’s point is one that is often overlooked. The main cast of Andor are contracted for the show, meaning the negotiations are over. Legacy actors are under no such contract, the cameo needs to be negotiated, and there is a higher likelihood of scheduling conflicts if they are working on other shows. The bigger the name, the higher the demand, and the more likely there are going to be problems – and that sounds to have necessitated at least one recast.

Gilroy cautions viewers against expecting some of the bigger, more well-established characters, too. According to Andor‘s creator, he never experienced any pressure to add them. “On the creative side, I will never have an experience like this ever again,” he continued. “It’s just amazing that they trusted us, and they backed our play all the way through.“

Our Take On Andor Season 2’s Prospective Recasts

No doubt Andor‘s scripts were subtly rewritten based on availability, but it sounds as though at least one character was too important to be written out, meaning a recast was necessary. This is quite surprising, given Lucasfilm has often expressed resistance to recasts; bosses have often blamed the poor box office performance of Solo: A Star Wars Story on its Han Solo recast, which seems like something of an oversimplification. This has even led to incredibly expensive CGI body-doubles being used to incorporate Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker into The Mandalorian era shows.

It’s possible Star Wars is finally beginning to acknowledge the simple fact that recasts are sometimes necessary. If so, this opens up some tremendous story possibilities going forward, potentially allowing some legacy characters the chance to shine ever brighter. Andor season 2 looks as though it could be something of a trend-setter.

Source: THR

Andor

10/10

Release Date

2022 – 2025-00-00

Network

Disney+

Showrunner

Tony Gilroy

Directors

Susanna White

Writers

Dan Gilroy