Andor is one of the most highly anticipated projects of recent Star Wars media. Let's face it, the show deserves its fan following. In addition to eight Emmy nominations, it has won eight awards and been nominated for 84 more. It appeals to fans for a variety of reasons, and showrunner Tony Gilroy has some thoughts on what he hopes will come of the show's success.
What does Tony Gilroy want for future Star Wars projects?
We already know that the showrunner for this prequel series to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is ready to move on. He's said that, "there are other things to do," and commented that he wants to get back in the director's chair b'efore he forgets how to direct." With the final season coming out on April 22, the show's impact on the franchise and the trail it will blaze are on the minds of many people, Gilroy included.
According to Justin Carter at Gizmodo, to Gilroy, "Andor could (and should) pave the way for 'a Star Wars three-camera sitcom, or a horror movie.'" They report that his first response to Lucasfilm's president Kathleen Kennedy contacting him was, "Could you do a courtroom drama?" He is clearly thinking of this space opera fandom as containing a multitude of possibilities, and "for a long time Star Wars has primarily done stories centered on the Jedi, clones, and Mandalorians (or all three)."
While we don't have the courtroom drama that he proposed or anything resembling a sitcom, Andor has given us stories of guerrilla warfare, a hero's journey of an untried insurgent, and the stressors of a regime trying to maintain an iron grip on a chaotic Empire. Gizmodo also notes that the first season "focused on other aspects of the universe - bureaucracy, the logistics of heists and prison facilities, kicking fascists and hitting them with bricks - and became a critical darling." Carter attributes some of the show's success to how "even before its first season was over, was considered one of the best Star Wars projects in a while, and added some variety with its political and spy thriller focus, and by just taking itself seriously." Gilroy further says that they've "made [their] lane and [they've] worked really hard to make it. It's up to other people to find a new way to do it."
Andor's second season aims to "break new ground and open up some canonical things and concepts." We look forward to seeing how that plays out when the final season begins on April 22, streaming on Disney+.