Star Wars: Andorshowrunner Tony Gilroy knows that there are a lot of morally gray areas in the series so far, and that’s exactly what he wants. If everything goes according to his plans, audiences will actually sympathize with not just the good guys, but the villains as well. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean Gilroy is playing both sides.
There’s a lot of nuance among the new characters ofAndor. While viewers are obviously rooting for the heroes like Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor and Genevieve O’Reilly’sAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez-inspired take on Mon Mothma, many have also found themselves quietly sticking by some of the show’s unambiguous antagonists. According to Gilroy, that’s all by design.Star Warshas scarcely seen the members of the oppressive Galactic Empire as anything more than one-dimensional bad guys, so this series is a chance to delve a little deeper.
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“I can’t imagine writing black and white. I mean, I have believed in every villain I’ve ever written, you know?” Gilroy explained in an interview withStarWars.com. “You’ve really gotta believe in him. You gotta love him. You gotta know why they’re doing it. You gotta feel for it. And there has to be a reason for it. You’ve gotta get behind everybody.“Andorseems to revel in this sort of idea, where the heroes like Cassian aren’t entirely wholesome and the villains aren’t entirely unrelatable. Just like Syril Karn (Kyle Soller) gets an intimate moment toenjoy his blue cerealafter ruining his career, others under the Empire’s employ offer similar glimpses into their own surprisingly understandable motivations.
Another interesting new character is Denise Gough’s Imperial officer Dedra Meero, who gets a similar focus as she faces some pretty realistic setbacks. But that’s a clever way to draw audiences into a trap of morals vs. sympathy, particularly as Meero’s story reflects real-world issues as shedeals with gender politics in the Empire. “You go quite a few episodes where this is a woman who’s fighting her way up in a male environment,” Gilroy continued. “This is a person that’s really trying. I’m on her side and she’s doing the right thing and other people aren’t listening. She’s better at her job than everyone else. And then all of a sudden you go, ‘Oh my God, I wish she wasn’t so good at her job.’ If you’ve been rooting for somebody all that time, can you stop rooting for them just because they have some occupational flaws? I don’t know.”
That last sentence is pretty significant because while Gilroy is the one introducing this gray area, he still doesn’t have a solid answer for how audiences should feel about who they’re rooting for. It’s just one more instance ofAndorintroducing a much-needed dark toneto the franchise. When viewers find themselves feeling conflicted about Cassian’s often ruthless actions while empathizing with the unfair roadblocks Dedra faces, that’s where this series truly shines.
Of course, it’s not a formula for everybody. Some people want a simpler story of good vs. evil without any uncertainty, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Both types of stories have their place. But right now, the ambiguous sort is having its time in the spotlight, and that may be what makesAndorone of the most enjoyableStar Warsexperiences in years.
Star Wars: Andorcan be streamed on Disney Plus, with new episodes releasing on Wednesdays.
