By George & Josh Bate
With the second and final season of Andor Season 2 right around the corner, series creator Tony Gilroy has sat down with several outlets to discuss the upcoming 12 episodes, the emotional impact he wants them to have, the journey of its multitude of interesting characters, and more.
Below we’re recapping some of the most intriguing reveals and statements about Andor Season 2 made by Gilroy….
Speaking to Gizmodo, Tony Gilroy said his approach to Star Wars is “to take it more seriously than anybody ever took it.” He elaborated, “We’re trying very rigorously to be more serious about this shit than anybody ever has been.”
Part of this serious approach to Star Wars will likely play out in Season 2’s depiction of the Ghorman Massacre, one of the franchise’s most brutal and disturbing moments. Gilroy confirmed in interviews with Collider and Gizmodo that Andor will indeed depict the Ghorman Massacre. “It’s a very significant part of our show that can do a lot of different things for us,” Gilroy remarked. “I’m really confident that the really deep, passionate Star Wars community will appreciate how we’ve straightened out that story.” Gilroy continued, “The Ghorman Massacre, which is a canonically mentioned event, has some confusion about it that we’re straightening out. There’s not one single thing that’s written about it, nobody knows what it is, so we’ll define all that” Gilroy also confirmed that the Ghorman Massacre will be depicted in 5 of the 12 episodes of Season 2.
Regarding how emotionally devastating Season 2 will be, Gilroy told Collider, “If I don’t make you cry, I will be very unhappy.” Yes, this confirms what we already knew – none of us are ready for this season (insert crying emoji here).
Likely providing some levity to the proceedings will be K-2SO, the sassy droid played by Alan Tudyk in Rogue One, who makes his triumphant return in Andor Season 2. Gilroy explained to Collider that “there was a reason” for delaying Cassian and K2 meeting in Season 1. “But it does mean that I definitely have to deliver on the meet-cute, so we’ll see how it goes. We’re happy with what we have.” We’re totally onboard for calling Cassian and K2’s first meeting a “meet-cute,” by the way.
Also back from Rogue One in Andor Season 2 is Saw Gerrera. Tony Gilroy confirmed to EW that the rebel played by Forest Whitaker will have an expanded role this season.
Characters will go through a lot of emotional turmoil in Season 2, but none more so than Mon Mothma. “Of all the characters in the show, of all the hellacious things that people go through, and all of the difficulties and hardships, I don’t think anybody has a harder road than she does,” Gilroy explained to EW.
The Season 1 finale (which deemed to be a near-perfect hour of television) saw Maarva give a grand posthumous speech on Ferrix. Despite dying in Season 1, Maarva will still have a looming presence moving forward, according to Gilroy. “She’s always with [Cassian],” Gilroy said. “Ferrix is always with Bix, Wilmon, Cassian, and Brasso. It’s with them all the time. [Maarva] carries forward as a fundamental piece of who he is and what he’s become. So, she’s ever present.”
Speaking of Bix, Gilroy confirmed that Season 2 will explore a romance between Adria Arjona’s character and Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor. “It’s another huge epic journey for her huge epic journey,” Gilroy said. “What if love and revolution come to you at the same time? And they don’t play well together. What do you do? That’ll be the friction for her.”
When asked whether Jyn Erso will appear in Season 2, Gilroy responded, “Everything that we’re gonna bring in to get to Rogue is going to be organic. There’s nothing we’re bringing in for fun. Or just because somebody wants to see it. It has to be germane to the story”
Gilroy explained that each three-episode block of Season 2 will take place over “three or four days.” He also stated that, due to the plan to release three episodes every week, fans are in store for “a movie a week.”
Gilroy was also asked about plans to release the scripts for Andor online. The series creator confirmed that this plan has been scrapped as to not have AI models use the scripts. “Why help the fucking robots any more than you can?” Gilroy asked.
Check out the full interview with Tony Gilroy by Collider here.
Check out the full interview with Tony Gilroy by EW here.
Check out the full interview with Tony Gilroy by Gizmodo here.
Ahead of the premiere of Andor Season 2, there’s ways to make the wait to April 22 less painful.
As we anxiously anticipate the arrival of Andor Season 2 on Disney+ on April 22, a special look back at Andor Season 1 with Tony Gilroy and special guests will take place on Thursday March 13 at noon PT. The special look, which will stream live on the Star Wars, Disney+, Lucasfilm & Hulu YouTube channels, will also include an opportunity for fans to have their questions answered by the team.
In addition, the first three episodes of Andor Season 1 can now be streamed for FREE on YouTube. Meanwhile, all 12 episodes of Season 1 are available on Hulu and Disney+ to stream.
Disney have also released an official 14 minute recap of Andor Season 1, which can be seen below….
