But how did this lifelong freedom fighter become the Rebellion’s foremost assassin? That’s the question at the center of Andor, a new live-action series coming to Disney+ in August. The spy thriller follows Cassian five years before the events of Rogue One and reunites actor Diego Luna with writer-director Tony Gilroy, who oversaw extensive reshoots for the 2016 movie directed by Gareth Edwards. Luna, who hails from Mexico, grew up a Star Wars fan, like most other kids born in the late ’70s. The saga, which in Spanish is called La guerra de las galaxias, has always been a big part of his life. Yet, as an actor, Luna’s stellar career has largely been defined not by Star Wars-sized blockbusters but by Oscar-nominated dramas, such as Alfonso and Carlos Cuarón’s coming-of-age road trip movie Y tu mamá también, in which he starred opposite Maribel Verdú and childhood friend Gael García Bernal. That film, which is set in 1999 against the backdrop of a major political shift in Mexico where the ruling party was ousted after 71 years in power, was an international hit and broke box office records in Luna’s home country. It also launched the movie career of the actor, who, at the time, was best known from telenovelas. On top of many other Spanish-language productions, he’s also worked with Steven Spielberg (The Terminal), Gus Van Sant (Milk), and Barry Jenkins (If Beale Street Could Talk). “It was quite an experience,” Luna says of wrapping the show’s first season. “I don’t think anything in my life has been like that. And I’m sure nothing will be like that ever again. It was such a mix of emotions.” “For me, Rogue One is the beginning of something,” Luna says. “I’m so happy to be able to dig in deeper.” In fact, the actor views “going backward” with the tale of Cassian Andor asan exciting challenge. Rogue One doesn’t reveal very much about Cassian’s past, but the spy does mention that he’s been fighting the Empire since he was six years old. That line, and the backstory Luna formed in his head to better understand his character’s motivations in the movie, are the jumping-off points for the show. But back in 2016, Luna assumed that Cassian’s origin story (“Something that was very personal and that just belonged to me”) would only live on in his imagination—he never thought we would see the rebel’s formative moments on the screen. According to the actor, fleshing out the character’s history with Gilroy and the writing team for Andor “was like when you dream something, and then suddenly, you’re talking about that dream with others… I was asked so many times, ‘What were you thinking when you said this? What was your backstory in this moment?’” We learn on the show that, when he was just a boy, Cassian’s home planet was taken over by the Empire, forcing him to escape off-world. Much of his anger toward the Empire stems from this traumatic event and the feeling that his home was ripped away from him. Disney’s recent Star Wars films have sometimes been criticized for being too preoccupied with the past, taking a more nostalgic view of Lucas’ work instead of trying to say something new about the present moment. It’s a valid criticism. After all, social commentary was at the core of the first six Star Wars movies—the Original Trilogy tackled the Vietnam War and the Nixon era, while the Prequels were especially prescient in the ways that they explored how complacent democracies can give rise to fascism. Much of the Sequel Trilogy and Solo seemed to forget this core tenet of Star Wars storytelling, but not Rogue One, which very much felt like a reflection of the political turmoil of 2016—even as it paid tribute to A New Hope—and Andor seems poised to follow suit. “When I was acting, when I was trying to think what each moment meant, I was trying to find reference to my life,” Luna says of finding a personal entry point into the character and story of Cassian Andor. “I think Star Wars has always been great at that. It always speaks about its time. And that’s what makes, not just this project, but Star Wars really important for so many.” “He fights on a team where no one speaks like him and he’s surrounded by so many different accents in Rogue One,” Luna says. “That speaks to that diversity, that richness, and it has a lot to do with the world you and I live in. And that’s the beauty of this story, of these characters, and the braveness of Rogue One.” Andor seems to take a similar approach by centering a refugee who’s trying to make it on a planet that’s not his own and then defend that place from an Empire that assimilates and strips away people’s rights. On display, even in the show’s first teaser, is that important element of social commentary that’s been missing from recent Star Wars fare. Star Wars: Andor premieres on Aug. 31 on Disney+.
