Andor Season 2 Will Cover the ‘Three Days Before Rogue One’ In Its Final Episodes

The second and final season of Andor is currently in production, and the details about it so far sound like the critically acclaimed series will go even further with its intense and socially resonant story about building a rebellion from the ground up. With production closing out later this year, we’ve learned more about the show and how the final episodes will lead directly into Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

In Empire Magazine, series creator and showrunner Tony Gilroy stated that the final three episodes of Andor will take place during three days leading up to Cassian Andor’s opening scene from Rogue One — which saw the character meet with an Imperial informant about rumors of a superweapon made by the Empire. While we’ve known that the series would close out by leading directly to the moments before Rogue One, the fact that it’s a story arc focusing on the immediate days before Cassian’s fateful mission could make for some intriguing storytelling.

In the interview with Empire Magazine, series star Diego Luna and Gilroy talked about closing out the series.
“The risks this season will take are very different,” Luna explained to Empire Magazine.

“In every way,” Gilroy followed up. “Look, man, I’m not trying to make a career here; if anything, I’m on the downhill side of a long career. But this is an opportunity. This is 1,500 pages of the most dynamic material in these people’s lives to deal with. We got it right the first time, and you don’t want to let your foot off the gas.”

While the first season of Andor focused on a year in the life of Cassian Andor five years before the events of Rogue One, the second and final season will have its 12 episodes set across four years — with every three episodes focusing on a year during Cassian’s life as a rebel leader. Andor was initially planned as a five-season show, but Gilroy later revised plans to opt for a more modest length to avoid a lengthy series production.

IGN recently got to see some early footage of the second season at the Star Wars Celebration in London. The teaser showed that the growing war between the Empire and the Rebellion would be much more intense in the closing season of the series. With the season one finale of Andor teasing the construction of the Death Star, the second season will show even more stronger ties to the fan-favorite film. However, one detail that was also shared recently was that Felicity Jones would not be making a return as Jyn Erso in Andor. As stated during an interview with BBC One radio, Jones stated that she still hopes for a chance to return to the character in some form.

Unlike other Star Wars shows like The Mandalorian or Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor took a far more dramatic and less nostalgic take on a traditional Star Wars story, and the debut season earned a lot of strong buzz from fans and critics alike — including a prestigious Peabody Award nomination, which is unusual for a sci-fi genre show. Along with great performances from Diego Luna, Stellan Skarsgaard, Denise Gough, and the surprise appearance of Andy Serkis, the series also earned praise for its morally ambiguous and politically relevant take on Star Wars — which set it apart from other recent shows.

Andor was also awarded IGN’s best show of 2022, with editor Simon Cardy stating that “Andor is Star Wars like you’ve never seen it before. It’s a sophisticated look at morally grey issues that plague our world, set in a normally distant-feeling universe that we are so used to seeing in black-and-white terms. It’s smart, exciting, undeniably emotive – and it’s also our pick as the best TV show of 2022.”

Currently, Andor season 1 and Rogue One is now streaming on Disney Plus.

Alessandro Fillari is a freelance writer at IGN.