From Rogue One to Andor, Diego and Genevieve Discuss The Most Surprising Prequel Series

In Disney+‘s Andor, which takes place five years before the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Diego Luna and Genevieve O’Reilly reprise their previous roles. 

While O’Reilly played Mon Mothma in both Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Rogue One, Luna is the star of the live-action Star Wars series as the titular Cassian Andor (as well as voiced the character in a few animated offerings). 

But, while Cassian was introduced in Rogue One as a seasoned intelligence officer within the Rebel alliance, Andor will fill in a lot of blanks about how he came to support that cause. In a throwaway Rogue One phrase, Cassian reveals, “I’ve been in this fight since I was six years old!” This past is briefly alluded to.

According to Luna, learning about that formative childhood, which is shown in early Andor flashbacks, “was a revelation for me.” “And I think it’s going to be fairly interesting for audiences as well, because I don’t believe people really thought about that when they were seeing Rogue One — when Cassian says, “I’ve been part of this war since I was six years old.”

 When you’re six years old, what does it mean to start a fight? Why do you miss your youth so much now that you are already a part of a movement? Luna queries We’ll find out what that line meant, but when I read what Tony [Gilroy, the author of Andor] was suggesting, I was astonished, as is frequently the case with Tony Gilroy’s work. It’s so intricate and original, but it’s also so juicy.

Luna affirms that the co-screenwriter of Rogue One, Gilroy, “has an answer for everything,” and that Cassian’s history is compelling. I believe audiences will have a different perspective on him after learning about his upbringing.

Genevieve O’Reilly says that the most surprising thing about her character’s biography was learning that Mon Mothma was a good senator (with a few secrets) before she became the leader of the Rebel Alliance. She learned this from Andor, who played the first chancellor of the New Republic in Return of the Jedi.

O’Reilly tells TVLine, “I love this character, and I’ve played this woman many times, but what struck me was the grandeur of her life, the opulence of that empire she was living in.

I remember playing her for a very brief time in Revenge of the Sith when I was very young, and I remember those costumes, so I knew she had been a senator from a very young age. The actress continues, “I recall the details and the beauty of them is in line with, say, Queen Amidala at the time. And now that you consider the orthodoxy she had been following within the Empire, it all makes sense.

This Wednesday, September 21, Andor makes its debut with its first three episodes, which last 35 to 40 minutes apiece. The remaining 12 episodes of the season will thereafter air once a week. (Season 1 lasts a year; Season 2 will last for four years.) In Episode 4, O’Reilly makes his debut under some intriguing circumstances.

According to O’Reilly, “I love that they took the time to invest in that [backstory], because it offers me as an actor and us as an audience somewhere to go.” “I can’t wait to see how we go from here to there,” he said. “We know she ends up in a bunker in Yavin.”