What We Learned From The 'Andor' Season 1 Livestream With Tony Gilroy
Image Source: StarWars.com
On March 13th, Lucasfilm held a livestream hosted by Ash Crossan which reviewed elements of Andor Season 1 alongside Tony Gilroy. Several fans were able to ask questions live, while a few online creators were able to submit pre-taped questions for Tony. Joining the discussion were Adria Arjona, who played Bix Caleen, Genevieve O’Reilly who played Mon Mothma, and Duncan Pow who played Ruescott Melshi, each also being shown some notable clips from Season 1 and discussing them with Tony and the host. Today on CultureSlate, we’ll break down some of the most interesting things we learned during this livestream!
Adria Arjona
Adria’s portion of the event saw us learn a lot about Ferrix as well as the behind-the-scenes casting and acting. The first scene they showed was Bix’s meeting with Cassian at her business, which Gilroy revealed was called Ion Conversion Nodes and Components of Great Variety. He also noted that every salvage yard on Ferrix has its own business, and Bix inherited her shop. Adria for her part revealed that this scene, where Bix and Cassian discuss his sale of a starpath unit, was the scene she originally read for when auditioning for the part, with Gilroy revealing much later that they quickly gave her the role in the room. As for shooting the scene in the show, they had one day of rehearsal which was when Adria allowed herself to be a Star Wars fan, touching all the surfaces and pressing buttons in the dense garage environment.
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Image Source: StarWars.com
The next scene they analyzed, where Bix learns from Salman Paak that someone has betrayed Cassian, saw Gilroy praise Adria’s acting due to the intense emotions at play. Adria was apparently nervous about shooting this scene, but the blocking of the shots helped her overcome her worries. When discussing the character further, Adria emphasized how much Bix means to her, so much so that she even has a small tattoo representing the character on her arm. She is thankful that Gilroy believed in her and gave her the part. Lastly, when a fan asked which character besides Bix Adria connects the most with, she stated Maarva Andor, since she believes Bix looks up to Maarva and wants to be more like her.
Genevieve O’Reilly
Image Source: StarWars.com
Next up was Genevieve O’Reilly, who was very happy with her role in Andor. When asked about what it was like to play Mon Mothma over so many periods of the character’s life, O’Reilly answered that Mon was a mysterious character for her before Gilroy and Andor’s writing made her into a textured, complex woman for O’Reilly to connect with. For those unaware, she was cast in scenes that sadly got cut from Revenge of the Sith, and then returned for Rogue One and has played or voiced the character ever since. A later fan question reaffirmed just how much Andor added to Mon’s character, as O’Reilly described her surprise to find Mon was married with a daughter.
The scenes offered for analysis in O’Reilly’s section were the tense meeting in Luthen’s shop in Episode 7, where Mon is all but blackmailed to continue helping Luthen Rael, and then Episode 10’s meeting between Tay Kolma, Davos Sculdun, and Mon Mothma. Gilroy spoke about the scene in Episode 7 as demonstrating how constrained Mon is during that season of the show, while O’Reilly praised the scene from Episode 10 as a juicy scene she was excited to film, noting how it relied on acting in the face and the voice rather than the body due to how it was shot. A truly interesting reveal though involved the season’s ending, with that fateful introduction scene between Mon, Perrin, Leida, and the Sculduns. Beau Willimon, one of the show’s writers, approached Gilroy to ask about what they might do involving Leida and Davos’ son, seemingly suggesting the scenario and deal we see play out in the show wasn’t initially part of the writing. Gilroy, who initially believed they might not be able to go that far, soon learned that it was allowed, and so this last wrinkle was added in regarding Mon’s relationship with her daughter, and her daughter’s likely fate.
On a final note for Genevieve’s time on the stream, she answered a question regarding the fandom around Mon Mothma, saying how nervous she was for the reception of the show. She is so enormously grateful for the positive response though, and is just as excited as Adria Arjona for fans to get to see Season 2.
Duncan Pow
Image Source: StarWars.com
Duncan Pow was the last actor to appear, and his section had the most behind-the-scenes information of any actor. He revealed that when Gilroy called him to tell him that he wanted him to play Melshi again, he was also told a lot more about the character that helped him understand the role, and play this slightly younger version of the character. However, this call was right before the COVID pandemic began, and Duncan was forced to wait for his return to Star Wars.
His scenes of analysis were both from Episode 11, the first being the scene of Melshi and Cassian having escaped from the prison and making their way to the alien fishermen’s starship, and the second was Melshi and Cassian parting ways on Niamos. Tony Gilroy spoke about how the sequence of the two sneaking through the terrain and then making the run for the ship, was one of the most discussed scenes of the show, with multiple questions behind the scenes about its tone, location, and logistics. Gilroy called the sequence Sergio Leone meets Coen Brothers, while Pow revealed that when they first shot the running, both he and Diego Luna had injured themselves. Then, when discussing the scene on Niamos, Gilroy noted how the shots mirror the ending of Rogue One with Cassian and Jyn on the beach.
Lastly, when asked a question about how intense the prison arc was to shoot, Duncan Pow noted how amazing the sets were, and how a hundred guys in one room was impressive. However, it took time over the seven-week shoot for the gravity and oppressive atmosphere of the sets to start impacting him and others, with an edge of claustrophobia at play as well. He too echoed the words of the others, being incredibly excited for the show’s premiere and fans being able to see his work with the character.
Tony Gilroy
Image Source: StarWars.com
Throughout the event, and then after the last actor had left, a series of questions were aimed at Tony Gilroy specifically or he discussed some notable parts of Season 1. For starters, after a question from the creators at StruggleNation, he noted that his favorite scene of the series is the first meeting between Syril Karn and the chief, which he is aware is an odd choice. But he loves it because, in his words, it is exactly what he wanted the show to be able to do. Later, he stated that his second favorite scene is the show’s climax at Rix Road, due to all of Ferrix, this diverse community, coming together in one place, and because the scene is a showcase for almost everyone in the show. The road scenes were also the most complicated piece of filmmaking he’s ever been involved in.
When a fan asked about the origins of Luthen Rael, Gilroy stated how he needed a new mysterious character, an organizer, and how each element for Luthen came into place over time as he almost gradually sketched the character out. He also noted that Season 2 will see us learn a lot about Luthen and his past. There were other teases regarding Season 2 across the livestream, from a note that his favorite scene between Bix and Cassian is in Season 2, to almost certainly suggesting that Leida Mothma IS getting married to Stekan Sculdun, to noting how there is a significant payoff for set-up from Season 1 for characters like Bix and Mon.
Conclusion
Overall, the livestream was a wealth of great information and perspectives from all four figures involved, and is worth watching on its own! We deeply enjoyed watching it ourselves over at CultureSlate, and encourage fans to do so themselves for every reveal big and small!
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Source(s): YouTube, StarWars.com
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