The Andor actor that was also in The Force Awakens

Warning: This article contains spoilers from the 3-episode premiere of Andor. 

Star Wars fans are livid with Andor character Timm Karlo and his selfish decision to sell out Cassian Andor. Timm’s insecurities causes him to tell Pre-Mor Authority that the suspect they seek (Cassian) is on the planet Ferrix. In doing so, Timm betrays the trust of his partner Bix Caleen.

After Bix learns the truth, she races to save Cassian, but is detained by the Pre-Mor Authority “Corpos.” When Timm finds her handcuffed and bleeding, he angrily charges at the Corpos, who shoot and kill him in return.

While this appears to be the end of Timm’s story in Andor, it is the not the first time that the actor who plays him (James McArdle) has appeared in Star Wars.

McArdle made his Star Wars debut as a Resistance pilot named Niv Lek in The Force Awakens. Niv Lek can be seen flying an X-Wing with other Resistance pilots during the Battle of Starkiller Base.

With both The Force Awakens and Andor being canon, some fans may wonder if there is any connection or familial relation between McArdle’s characters in both stories.

Given Timm´s fate in Andor and the amount of time that places between then and The Force Awakens, it is highly unlikely that the Resistance pilot is a descendant of Timm’s. Timm is clearly dead in Andor and nothing indicates that he has any children.

Given that Andor takes place 5 years before Rogue One and A New Hope, the original trilogy takes place over the course of roughly 4 years, and then 30 years pass between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, nearly 40 years pass between Timm’s death in Andor and the Battle of Starkiller Base. That amount of time lessens the chance of there being a connection.

If there is any kind of connection between Timm and Niv Lek, or if they are related, there is something poetic about it, from an insecure man who sold out someone his girlfriend cared deeply about to the Empire, to fighting the First Order head-on.

Ultimately, it is just fun to see an actor playing multiple characters across different Star Wars projects. If there is any sort of connection between Timm and Niv Lek, it is probably something that would be confirmed in a reference book, and not in a story.