End of Andor seemed almost predetermined: whatever happens, Cassian had to find himself alone and on the way to the events of Snape One. It was therefore difficult to imagine that the show had surprises in reserve for his series final – except that he absolutely did it. In our latest interview with showrunner Tony Gilroy, he explains the end of the touch and answers other burning questions from the second masterful season of Star Wars drama.
Let’s go directly to the final touch: then Bix knew that she was pregnant with the Cassian child when she left Yavin, right?
I think it’s a way to play. I would not discuss it against it. I think that Adria (Arjona) went for this (in her performance). I don’t know exactly mathematics, but you might think that it would be something to do with it. Yeah.
I didn’t see him coming and I thought it was smart. But if people start to think: “Hey, now we can have a Andor’s son Spin-off show set 30 years later ”- because people tend to think of Star Wars- are they missing?
I want to have hope at the end. I want to finish on something positive. The rebellions are built on hope. I want to honor the people who sacrificed throughout the show. And at the same time, if I can do this and give Disney a reason to be happy to go ahead and not end with a disappointment, why not?
It was just as if sometimes things that are a little serious are so biological and I just had the impression of checking us: are we too cheesy? But we won it. I think we really won it. And the tilting point was really achieved, as you have already said, if it is in her head, if she knows that she is pregnant, how much it helps to make a tip to leave.
The assistant of Luthen Kleya (Elizabeth Dulau), I think that people were surprised and impressed by the importance of his role in this season. He is a favorite character of black horses, and I was happy because she becomes a larger part of the story. Have you always had the mind that she was really going to go out?
It is one of the real pleasures of working on this enormous long -term thing – because you are entering and you sketch and you do things, and you look at what is wrong and what is good and what this person can do, and “Oh, my God, look at what extent that person is great.” And Elizabeth Dulau is her first concert. She came out of (UK Acting School) rada. Never had a concert. And some other actors were thrown and then left for greater roles and other things. She entered and we realized: “She is really great. Oh my God. She resists Stellan (Skarsgård). ”
And I never knew what Genevieve O’Reilly was going to be. He is an inherited character, but my God is a Stradivarius! Elizabeth Dulau, sacred shit. We have no bad movie on Elizabeth. Each scene, she crushed. And you want to start pushing the limits: “What can she do?” It is therefore the meeting of the opportunity and the need and the realization of what someone can do.
With the speech of my Mothma’s Senate, people have established many parallels. But where did it come from for you, in particular the part of the importance of objective truth?
This is a problem that has been on the table for a long time. Again, you can cite the chapter and the verse throughout the century, places where it was a real problem. I would ask the indulgence of not having been written at the time and that I try to be timeless and not to be pinned. I reached myself on the fact that the story is always relevant. Is it about Burning Books? Is it a question of burning witches? Is it about Galileo? What is it?
No truth, no justice. I think that the speech could unfortunately work in many guiding bodies in the past 500 years and always have its relevance. The false flag, the use of propaganda of an incident incident. The reichstag burning, “Oh, let us bring together all the communists and all the Jews. They burned it.” The Gulf of Tonkin brings us to Vietnam. You can continue again and again.
When this speech not have relevance? I don’t know. If it has a relevance now, then too bad for us. We live in more history than we think.
People wondered if and how strength was going to enter the show. And with the force healer who somehow reads the fortune of Cassian, you have found a way to integrate it and also to present this idea of destiny. The way I read it, this idea of making sure that Cassian accomplished his destiny was the key to Bix’s decision.
Totally, yes.
So it seemed quite elegant. How is it united to you and what do you think there?
Exactly as you said. I wanted her to go. I thought of killing her in different ways, but I wanted her to go. And I would have been disappointed if we did not have an aspect of strength. I would have been disappointed if we had these conversations that we would have with the spectacle that came out where I had completely ignored something that was so important for so many people and which was part of the world of the world.
So when he got together, all the fate began to become really attractive. I thought, why shouldn’t it be fate? He is in Aldhani, he is in Narkina. What did he live-why is he still alive? It’s amazing. What saves him? What is it? And what is the slightest way of cheesy that I can do with it?
What if it was me, wouldn’t you be afraid? The reluctance about fate is just as fascinating as the acceptance of it in a way. And his fear, his reluctance on this subject, then in the end, the fact that it removes the person he loves the most of him. We had to arrive in a place where it seemed legitimate to everyone that she would leave. And I think we finally found emotional truth when we crossed it. There have been a lot of conversations.
Now that you have a taste of how much can be done in a genre like science fiction, has it changed your idea of the kind of thing you want to do with the rest of your career?
No. (Laughter.) I want to go back and lead if I can. I try to remove a film. I’m not sure to do it, but I would like to come back. I wrote a script during the summer and the show made me a better writer on an order of magnitude that I cannot even understand, because most of what you write is not done. And often you turn your wheels. And for that, everything we wrote, everything that came out of this piece went to the adjustment and was filmed. And there are just … I had 1,500 pages, 24 hours of scenes, with great players and great directors. I obtained a major elevator of the show. Whatever this has removed my life, it gave me a huge advantage as a writer. I am so a better writer now that five years ago.
I am proud of what we have done. I do not want to seem arrogant or something like that, but it would be difficult to imagine that I would never work on everything that would be as important to me as that. I would like a nice race with my chops at this stage. I feel like a ball player who has just played all season and my knees are good and I’m ready to leave. I really have the impression that my game is on, and I would like to use it while I have it.
I am curious, where, if anywhere, you surprised yourself in creating season two.
We were all rejected by what time did these characters. In this last editing – where they are and dedra in the prison and Geneviève and Val over there and Kleya wake up saying: “Oh, my God” – what the time has done to them is not something you … I don’t know, maybe someone is so intelligent that they can plan this. I I don’t have this visionary power, but it’s really cool to get there and say: “Wow, look at what happened.” It’s a surprise.
