Diego Luna Explains What Makes Rogue One Prequel Andor Unique

Exclusive: Diego Luna explains how fans may know where his Star Wars character's story ends but Andor will likely surprise fans with where it begins.

Diego Luna Explains What Makes Rogue One Prequel Andor Unique

Andor star Diego Luna explains the uniqueness of Disney+’s upcoming prequel to the Gareth Edwards’ blockbuster Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Luna made his Star Wars debut in Rogue One as Rebel Alliance super spy and assassin, Cassian Jeron Andor. The respective film follows Andor, Jyn Erso, and a team of soldiers’ suicide mission to steal the Death Star plans, which leads directly into the events of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope.

Since Disney acquired Lucasfilm, Rogue One has arguably been the most well-received Star Wars film. The franchise’s subsequent small-screen success with The Mandalorian has resulted in the development of other shows, including The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka, and Andor. The latter series takes place between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, following its titular character’s time before the events of Rogue One. The upcoming Disney+ show will delve deeper into Andor’s unwavering commitment to the burgeoning Rebellion. In addition to Luna, Andor will feature other familiar characters in Genevieve O’Reilly’s Mon Mothma and Forest Whitaker’s Saw Gerrera alongside newcomers Stellan Skarsgård, Adria Arjona, Fiona Shaw, Denise Gough, and Kyle Soller.

In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, Luna explained Andor’s unique perspective as a prequel. While audiences may know where his character ends up, the beauty of the prequel will be in how contextualized what fans think they know. Read what he had to say below:

“It’s quite interesting. I don’t think you actually know where he starts. And that’s what’s beautiful: you know where he ends, but not where he starts. That’s why it’s a very special project because normally as an audience you never approach something like that. It’s the opposite, in fact. In promotion, they tell you where things start, and you end up being surprised where it ends. Here it’s the other way around, which makes it a very interesting journey for audiences and for us.”

As it takes place five years before the events of Rogue One, Andor will share a timeline with the animated series Star Wars: Rebels and focus on the founding of the Rebellion. Rebels focuses on the crew of the Ghost as they combat Inquisitors and Darth Maul, and intersects with Ahsoka after the events of Order 66. Although part of the Rebellion, Ezra Bridger and company began on the outskirts while the new cast of characters appears to be truly at the heart of the Rebellion’s “reckoning” in Andor‘s first teaser trailer.

Star Wars Celebration 2022 revealed the first Andor trailer, teasing a gritty spy thriller that should reframe Rogue One and further flesh out fans’ understanding of the original trilogy. Since Andor overlaps with projects like Rebels and the video game Jedi: Fallen Order, the show presents the opportunity to introduce live-action versions of animated characters as well as cameo appearances by legacy characters alive and the inevitable arrival of Alan Tudyk’s comedic droid, K-2SO. More important than adherence to canon and fan service, however, is how the series begins when the first of Andor‘s 24 episodes premiere on Disney+ on August 31, 2022.