Draft:Andor season 1

The first season of the American television series Andor is part of the Star Wars franchise and a prequel to the film Rogue One (2016), which in turn is a direct prequel to the original Star Wars film (1977). The season begins five years before the events of those films and shows how a thief, Cassian Andor, is radicalized against the oppressive Galactic Empire. It also explores how the wider Rebel Alliance is formed and efforts by the Empire to stop this. The season was produced by Lucasfilm with Tony Gilroy serving as showrunner.

Diego Luna stars as the title character, reprising his role from Rogue One. Kyle Soller, Adria Arjona, Stellan Skarsgård, Fiona Shaw, Genevieve O'Reilly, and Denise Gough also star. The series was announced in November 2018, with Luna attached and Stephen Schiff hired as showrunner. By April 2020, Schiff was replaced by Rogue One co-writer Gilroy as creator and showrunner. Filming began at the end of November, with Gilroy unable to direct as planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Filming took place at Pinewood Studios in London and on location around the United Kingdom, and wrapped by September 2021.

The season premiered on the streaming service Disney+ on September 21, 2022, with its first three episodes. The rest of the season's 12 episodes were released weekly until November 23. A second season was confirmed in May 2022.

Cast and characters
A thief and scavenger whose home planet, Kenari, was rendered uninhabitable by a mining disaster. The series begins with Andor as a "revolution-averse" cynic and explores how he becomes "the most passionate person who's going to give themselves to save the galaxy" in Rogue One. Gilroy had described him as a natural leader who manipulates people, adding that he is "really a perfect kind of spy, warrior, killer." Antonio Viña portrays a young Andor, when he was known as Kassa, and Lucas Bond plays a slightly older Cassian. A Deputy Inspector for Preox-Morlana (Pre-Mor) Authority, a corporate conglomerate in charge of a trade sector. Karn works for Pre-Mor's security services and is determined to capture Andor after learning he killed two Pre-Mor security employees. Soller described his character as having "an extreme sense of need to impress, and fill a hole in himself. And so that really is about ascending to the top of whatever field he's in. The field he's chosen is one of restriction and complete control, and one of domination."
 * Diego Luna as Cassian Andor:
 * Kyle Soller as Syril Karn:
 * Adria Arjona as Bix Caleen: A mechanic and black market dealer who is Andor's ally and close friend.
 * Joplin Sibtain as Brasso: Andor's co-worker and friend.
 * James McArdle as Timm Karlo: Caleen's co-worker and boyfriend.
 * Rupert Vansittart as Hyne: Syril's Pre-Mor superior.
 * Stellan Skarsgård as Luthen Rael: Caleen's dealer contact who is a part of the Rebel Alliance. He hires Cassian on his first mission as a Rebel operative. Luthen poses publicly as an eccentric antiques dealer from Coruscant.
 * Fiona Shaw as Maarva Andor: Cassian's adoptive mother who saved him from Kenari with Clem.
 * Alex Ferns as Linus Mosk: A Pre-Mor officer.
 * Gary Beadle as Clem Andor: Maarva's partner and Cassian's adoptive father. Cassian uses his name as an alias.
 * Genevieve O'Reilly as Mon Mothma: An Imperial senator for the wealthy core world of Chandrila who tries to navigate the politics of the Empire while secretly helping fund the Rebel Alliance.
 * Denise Gough as Dedra Meero: An ambitious and strategic supervisor for the Imperial Security Bureau.
 * Faye Marsay as Vel Sartha: A Rebel leader on the planet Aldhani and Mothma's cousin.
 * Varada Sethu as Cinta Kaz: A Rebel on Aldhani who is the team's medic and healer.
 * Elizabeth Dulau as Kleya Marki: Luthen's assistant at his antiques store.
 * Kathryn Hunter as Eedy Karn: Syril's mother.
 * Alastair Mackenzie as Perrin Fertha: Mothma's husband.
 * Anton Lesser as Partagaz: The head Imperial officer at the Imperial Security Bureau.
 * Alex Lawther as Karis Nemik: An idealistic Rebel on Aldhani who has written an anti-Empire manifesto.
 * Sule Rimi as Gorn: An Imperial officer on Aldhani who is secretly one of Vel's Rebels.
 * Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Arvel Skeen: A mysterious Rebel on Aldhani.
 * Gershwyn Eustache Jnr as Taramyn Barcona: A Rebel on Aldhani who is a former stormtrooper.
 * Stanley Townsend as Jayhold Beehaz: Gorn's Imperial superior on Aldhani.
 * Ben Miles as Tay Kolma: A banker who is Mothma's childhood friend from whom she seeks help.
 * Andy Serkis as Kino Loy: A prisoner and floor manager at the Imperial factory facility on the moon Narkina 5.
 * Duncan Pow as Ruescott Melshi: A labor worker and inmate at the Imperial factory facility on Narkina 5 who will later join the Rebel Alliance alongside Andor.
 * Forest Whitaker as Saw Gerrera: A veteran of the Clone Wars and the leader of a militant insurgent group, the Partisans.
 * Richard Dillane as Davo Sculdun: A shady businessman, described by Mon Mothma as a "thug".

Dave Chapman provided the voice for Maarva's droid B2EMO. Other residents of Ferrix include Victor Perez as Rashi, a grappler who works with Brasso; Raymond Anum as Nurchi, a junk dealer and Imperial informant; Muhannad Bhaier as Wilmon Paak, the son of Salman who works at the Repaak Salyard; Abhin Galeya as Salman Paak, owner of the Repaak Salyard; Kieran O'Brien as Pegla, a sentry at the shipyard; Neil Bell as the "Time Grappler" who signals the time in the bell tower by banging an anvil; Zubin Varla as Xanwan, the head of the transport business on Ferrix; Kiran Shah as Granik, a dispatcher working for Xanwan; and Pamela Nomvete as Jezzi, a member of the Daughters of Ferrix who helps care for Maarva. Other ISB supervisors include Ben Bailey Smith as Blevin, Robert Emms as Lonni Jung, Michael Jenn as Lagret, and Lucy Russell as Grandi, with Jacob James Beswick and Noof Ousellam as Meero's attendants Heert and Corv. Lee Ross plays Kloris, Mothma's driver and a spy for the ISB, and Bronte Carmichael plays Mothma's daughter Leida. Wilf Scolding portrays Vanis Tigo, captain of Imperial garrison on Ferrix, and Nick Moss plays his lieutenant Keysax. Prisoners on Narkina 5 include Christopher Fairbank as Ulaf, Clemens Schick as Ham, Brian Bovell as Jemboc, Tom Reed as Taga, Josef Davies as Xaul, Rasaq Kukoyi as Birnok, and Mensah Bediako as Zinska

Additional guest stars include Lee Boardman and Stephen Wight as Kravas Drezzer and Verlo Skiff, the Pre-Mor officers who are killed by Andor in the first episode; Margaret Clunie as the hostess of a brothel; Belle Swarc as Andor's sister Kerri; Ron Cook as Willi, a chatty businessman who visits Ferrix; Nick Blood as Kimzi, a corporal at the Imperial garrison on Aldhani; David Hayman as the chieftain of the native Aldhani people; Malcolm Sinclair as Colonel Wullf Yularen, a high-ranking ISB officer; Alex Blake as Flob, an employee of the Imperial Bureau of Standards; Aidan Cook as Benthic "Two Tubes", a mercenary working for Saw Gerrera; Joshua James as Dr. Gorst, an Imperial who tortures Bix; and Adrian Rawlins as Dr. Rhasiv, a prison media on Narkina 5. Mike Quinn and Damian Farrell provided the voices of the Keredian fishermen Dewi and Freedi Pamular, who were portrayed on set by Matt Lyons and Liam Cook. Sam Witwer provided the uncredited voice of the stormtrooper who arrests Cassian on Niamos.

Development
A spy thriller prequel series to the film Rogue One (2016) focused on the character Cassian Andor was revealed in November 2018. Tony Gilroy, who was credited as a co-writer on Rogue One and oversaw extensive reshoots for the film, was set to write the first episode, direct multiple episodes, and serve as showrunner by April 2020. Six weeks of pre-production had taken place in the United Kingdom by then, but this was halted and production on the series delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Pre-production had begun again by September ahead of a planned filming start the next month. At that time, Gilroy, who is based in New York, chose not to travel to the UK for production on the series due to the pandemic, and was therefore unable to direct the series' first episode. Instead, the UK-based Toby Haynes, who was already "high on the list" of potential directors for the series, was hired to direct the first three episodes. Gilroy would remain executive producer and showrunner. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy announced the series' title, Andor, in December 2020, along with its 2022 release date. Luna was revealed to be executive producing the series, which was set to consist of 12 episodes. In February 2021, Ben Caron and Susanna White were set as additional directors.

Writing
In addition to Gilroy and Schiff, writers for the season include Beau Willimon and Gilroy's brother Dan. The season begins five years before Rogue One and tells one year of Andor's story when he first becomes a revolutionary, with Gilroy approaching the season as if it was the first half of a novel. He stated, "This guy gave his life for the galaxy, right? I mean, he consciously, soberly, without vanity or recognition, sacrificed himself. Who does that?" Gilroy wanted to explore that idea in the season, beginning with Andor "being really revolution-averse, and cynical, and lost, and kind of a mess". The season shows the destruction of Andor's homeworld when he was a boy, and then is based on Andor's adopted planet which becomes radicalized against the Empire. Gilroy wanted to expand upon Andor's backstory, and had used a dialogue said by him in Rogue One, "I’ve been in this fight since I was six years old!", as a starting point. In the development process, Gilroy had labelled it "The Education of Cassian Andor". From there, he had created the planet Kenari as his childhood home, which he had lived in with other children and no adult supervision. Gilroy had compared it to being a "Lord of the Flies-like tribe", with Andor's separation from the tribe also serving as an introduction to Maarva and Clem Andor, desiring to introduce the audience to the Ferrix culture early on as the writing team had spent time creating its social structure. Towards the beginning, he had described Maarva as loving Andor "as much as she could possibly love him", though in the beginning of the series, she had been disappointed by the direction of Andor's life. As the series had progressed, Gilroy wanted to develop the emotional connection between them. After starting with Andor's story in the first three episodes, the fourth begins to expand the scope of the series to include the rest of its large ensemble cast, such as Rebel leader Mon Mothma whose path will cross with Andor's in the second season.

Design
Luke Hull served as production designer on the season, and described it as "very cinematic". Neal Scanlan provided the creature and droid effects after doing the same for all of Disney's Star Wars films, including Rogue One. He said his team was treating the series the same as they did the films, and due to Gilroy's involvement the series would fit within the same "pocket of [Star Wars] history" as Rogue One with a "slightly harder edge" than other Star Wars projects. Scanlan added that unused creatures developed for the films could be brought back for the season, alongside newly created creatures.

Casting
Diego Luna was confirmed to be reprising his role as Cassian Andor from Rogue One with the series' announcement in November 2018. In April 2019, Alan Tudyk was announced as also reprising his Rogue One role of K-2SO, but in January 2020 Tudyk revealed that he would no longer be appearing in the first season due to story changes. Also starring in the season are Stellan Skarsgård, Adria Arjona, Fiona Shaw, Denise Gough, Kyle Soller, and Genevieve O'Reilly. O'Reilly reprises her role of Mon Mothma from Rogue One and other Star Wars media.

Robert Emms was cast in a supporting role in June 2021, when Skarsgård revealed that Forest Whitaker was reprising his role as Saw Gerrera from Rogue One. In February 2022, David Hayman confirmed that he had a role in the series after being spotted by fans during filming. The season has over 200 named cast members and over 6,000 extras.

Filming
Filming began in London at the end of November 2020, with the production based at Pinewood Studios. The season was filmed under the working title Pilgrim, with Toby Haynes, Ben Caron, and Susanna White directing. Jonathan Freeman and Adriano Goldman served as cinematographers. The season was previously reported to be beginning filming in 2019, and then June 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both UK and U.S. COVID-19 protocols were followed on set, including daily temperature checks and tests for COVID-19 three times a week. Filming at Pinewood Studios was expected to end in July 2021.

By late January 2021, a large village set had been built on the grounds of a former quarry in Little Marlow, Buckinghamshire, not far from Pinewood Studios. Filming was expected to take place there until April. Filming in April also took place at the Coryton Refinery in Corringham, Essex. Several days of filming happened in Cleveleys on the Fylde Coast of Lancashire in early May, with the town's promenade and beach area dressed as an alien location, followed by another several days filming in the disused Winspit quarry in Dorset. Second unit and location filming began for at least a week at the end of May in Black Park, a country park in Buckinghamshire near Pinewood Studios which was also used for filming Disney's Star Wars films. By the end of May, main production on Pilgrim had moved to Glen Tilt in Perthshire, Scotland, and was expected to continue there until late June. Around 500 crewmembers travelled to Oban, Scotland, for filming at the nearby Cruachan Dam. This started by June 18, with sets built around the dam and filming also happening in its tunnels. From June 22 to 24, filming took place at Middle Peak Quarry near Wirksworth, Derbyshire. Production was expected to wrap in mid-2021, and Luna confirmed that it had finished by September 27.

Music
Gilroy contacted Nicholas Britell about composing for the series in 2020, before filming began so he could compose source music that would be played on set. Gilroy and Britell, who are neighbors in Manhattan, first met for the project in August 2020. Kennedy and Gilroy wanted the series to have a unique sound, and Britell said it would be "orchestral-plus" with a "wide range of sounds" including some that he had created. He added that the large scope of the series meant that "every episode has new demands, new music, and new ideas. It's important that as the story evolves, the music should evolve too." Britell was publicly revealed to be the series' composer in February 2022, and was still working on it that May when he said they had been "working nonstop for months, actually years, at this point". Recording was underway by then at AIR Lyndhurst studios in London, with a full orchestra. Britell was unable to travel to London due to the pandemic, but had a team in place there that also worked with him on other television series.

Marketing
A sizzle reel featuring behind-the-scenes footage of pre-production and filming was released during Disney's Investors Day presentation in December 2020, when the series' title and cast was officially announced by Kennedy. Gilroy, Luna, and O'Reilly promoted the series at Star Wars Celebration in May 2022 where they revealed the first teaser trailer. It was also released online, and The Hollywood Reporter Aaron Couch said it showed the "gritty side" of the Star Wars universe. Daniel Chin of The Ringer felt the series had a unique identity in the Star Wars franchise, with a darker tone, and said the teaser "paints a picture of the formative years of the rebellion against the Empire". Ryan Scott from /Film felt the teaser gave the "most comprehensive view at the show up to this point". He said the series could explore the morality behind the Rebels, writing that while they are usually seen as heroes there is also "much gray area in there to be explored". Writing for CNET, Sean Keane felt the trailer did not give much away but gave an "intriguing taste of the show's espionage tone".

Luna promoted the series and debuted the official trailer on Good Morning America on August 1. Hattie Lindert from The A.V. Club highlighted the action scenes in the trailer, saying "In addition to the epic scale and darker tone, the series also promises intense fight scenes created with limited green screen use" and also noted Gilroy's experience with action films due to his work on the Jason Bourne films. The Hollywood Reporter James Hibberd enjoyed Andor's increased screen-time in the trailer compared to the teaser, and felt the series was a "welcome scenic change from the company's previous Star Wars shows". At CNN, Scottie Andrew felt it "reveals a bit more about Andor's evolution from common thief to galactic martyr". Luna and Kennedy promoted the series at the 2022 D23 Expo, with CNET's Keane writing "The trailer paints a pretty grim setup for revolutionary fighter Cassian Andor and his pals, as fighting the Empire and row upon row of stormtroopers looks like a one-way ticket to death". Meanwhile, Collider's Rachel Leishman felt the trailer "gives us a bit more of a look at where the rebellion is and who is fighting back against the Empire" and was excited for the portrayal of the Empire in the series, writing "Seeing these little missions and the feelings that the rebels have towards the Empire feels so perfectly align with what we know about Cassian that this trailer really just has us excited for what is to come with the series".

Release
The season premiered on Disney+ on September 21, 2022, with its first three episodes. The rest of the 12-episode season released weekly. The season was previously expected to debut in 2021, before production was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2022, Disney announced that the first two episodes would air on ABC on November 23, on FX on November 24, and Freeform on November 25, and be available on Hulu from November 23 through December 7. A similar move was also replicated across various countries in Europe, including Portugal, Spain, Poland and the Netherlands, with the first two episodes airing on Fox, on November 24 or 25, depending on the country.