The Star Wars universe is gearing up for a pivotal chapter as Andor makes its long-awaited return this spring. After a break in 2024, the acclaimed series from Lucasfilm is officially back with Season 2, which premiered on Disney+ on April 22. Audiences can now stream six out of the season’s 12 episodes, with more to come in weekly arcs.
As other shows like The Acolyte (now canceled) and Skeleton Crew took the spotlight, Andor was notably left out of 2023’s promotional cycle. This surprised many, especially given how strongly the show had resonated with critics upon its initial release.
“We started shooting in November,” creator Tony Gilroy shared during Star Wars Celebration Europe in 2023. “We’re about halfway. We’re gonna shoot through August. We’re on exact schedule. [We’ll] finish in August, spend another year on post. I suppose we’ll come out the following August.”
That optimistic timeline came before the entertainment industry faced massive disruptions. The dual WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes brought production across Hollywood to a halt in 2023, a development that—while not officially cited by Lucasfilm or Disney—likely played a role in the delayed rollout of Andor’s next installment.
Created by Tony Gilroy and headlined by Diego Luna as the titular Rebel spy, Andor broke ground when it debuted in 2022. It took a different path from other Star Wars series, favoring a grounded tone and character-driven drama over heavy visual effects or nostalgic references. Though it may not have matched the viewership of The Mandalorian or Ahsoka, its narrative ambitions won widespread praise.
Set five years before Star Wars: Episode IV–A New Hope (1977), Andor exists outside the interwoven storylines of the so-called recent “Mando-Verse.” Instead, it serves as a prelude to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), directly tracing Cassian Andor’s evolution toward the fateful mission that helped ignite the Rebellion.
Season 1 introduced a compelling ensemble cast whose individual arcs offered insight into the broader conflict unfolding across the galaxy. In addition to Luna, the series features Kyle Soller as ambitious Imperial functionary Syril Karn, Adria Arjona as Cassian’s loyal ally Bix Caleen, Stellan Skarsgård as rebel architect Luthen Rael, Fiona Shaw as Cassian’s adoptive mother Maarva, and Genevieve O’Reilly returning as Mon Mothma. Also featured are Andy Serkis in a standout turn as prison leader Kino Loy and Denise Gough as steely ISB agent Dedra Meero.
Their interwoven journeys helped build a richer, more personal view of the Rebellion’s earliest days—and the creeping authoritarianism of the Empire’s grip.
For Season 2, the storytelling scope has expanded. While the first season unfolded over a single year, the upcoming episodes will span four years. Each set of three episodes represents a different chapter in that timeline, covering key events in the lives of Cassian, Mon Mothma, and the growing resistance movement. The finale will feed directly into the events of Rogue One.
The directing roster for the season includes Ariel Kleiman, Janus Metz, and Alonso Ruizpalacios. On the writing side, Tony Gilroy is joined by Dan Gilroy, Beau Willimon, and Tom Bissell.
One of the more surprising developments this season came in Episode 6, “What a Festive Evening.” The installment ends with the reappearance of prequel-era leader Bail Organa—but it’s not Jimmy Smits in the role.
Originally introduced in Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones (2002), Bail Organa played a key role during the Republic’s final days. A senator from Alderaan and trusted ally to both Padmé Amidala and the Jedi Order, Bail famously helped Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi escape following the fall of the Republic in 2005’s Star Wars: Episode III–Revenge of the Sith. He later raised Leia Organa in secret, establishing a legacy of resistance that would stretch into the original trilogy.
Bail has appeared in various corners of the franchise—The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)—and is portrayed in live action by Jimmy Smits. But in Andor Season 2, the torch has been passed to Benjamin Bratt at least for now.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Gilroy explained the change. “We couldn’t work it out,” he said. “The scheduling didn’t work out. We really tried hard, but he wasn’t available and couldn’t make it.”
He added: “Bringing back legacy characters is really complicated […] It’s very expensive. It’s very, who’s working when. A lot of effort went into it, but we just couldn’t work it out scheduling wise.”
Whether Bratt’s portrayal is a one-off appearance or signals a larger role across the back half of the season remains to be seen. Regardless, longtime fans already know Bail’s fate—destroyed along with Alderaan in A New Hope after years of fighting the Empire from behind the scenes.
Disney+ kicked off Andor Season 2 with a three-episode drop on April 22. New episodes are arriving in weekly clusters, with the final arc scheduled to release May 13. That final batch will effectively create a narrative bridge, linking Andor’s conclusion to the start of Rogue One and setting up a seamless transition into A New Hope.
“I mean, we know what we have to do. We never had a moment where we let down [after Season 1],” Gilroy told Comic Book. “Everybody knew that we couldn’t be over-confident. And we also knew, if this works [on Season 1], we’d better write a bigger cheque for the second season. We knew that we had to go big. So, that’s what we’re trying to do. I mean, hell yeah. Hell yes. There hopefully are a lot of moments.”
Luna echoed that sentiment, teasing new emotional depth: “I have an answer for that one: not just in the [second] season. Even in Rogue One, you’re gonna hear some lines [on a rewatch] and go [gasps gutturally]. Before, you just passed over them. Not anymore.”
Lucasfilm has often retrofitted new meaning into older entries in the saga—whether through animation, novels, or additional shows. But Andor’s approach to retroactive storytelling feels especially intimate, rooted in the choices of its characters more than mythological iconography.
While the past few years brought several new Star Wars offerings to Disney+, the results were mixed. Series like The Acolyte and Skeleton Crew introduced fresh narratives and timelines but didn’t always connect with fans in the way Lucasfilm may have hoped. Against that backdrop, Andor’s return could offer a welcome course correction—one focused on politics, identity, and the hard cost of resistance.
How do you feel about this recast of a Star Wars fan-favorite character? Let us know in the comments down below!
