Andor, a spy thriller from Lucasfilm filmed over two 12-episode seasons, takes place five years before the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The era featured in Andor is filled with danger, deception and intrigue where Cassian will embark on the path that is destined to turn him into a rebel hero. Andor presents Star Wars from a different perspective, focusing on everyday people whose lives are affected by the Empire. The decisions they make have real consequences, and the stakes for them—and the galaxy—couldn't be higher.

Entertainment Affair recently joined Diego Luna, who plays the titular character; along with co-stars Genevieve O'Reilly, Adria Arjona, Denise Gough, Kyle Soller, and series creator and showrunner Tony Gilroy, for a virtual press conference to talk about the series. Check out a few highlights of the event below.

Tony Gilroy reveals what inspired the new Andor series

“I think the main idea is we have a character in Rogue One. And we know where he ends up. And we know how accomplished and complicated he is. And the idea that we can do a story that takes him literally from his childhood origins and walk him through a five-year history of an odyssey that takes him to that place, during a revolution, during a moment in history in a place where huge events are happening and real people are being crushed by it, the fact that we could follow somebody as an example of a revolution all the way through to the end, that was the walk-in for me. That was the buy-in, the opportunity to do that.”

Diego Luna was excited to dive more into Cassian Andor’s past and explore how he came to be who he was 

“Rogue One is a film about an event. You don’t get to know those characters. You don’t get to understand exactly where they come from, or what needed to happen. For me, it’s quite relevant today to tell the story of what needs to happen for a revolutionary to emerge, to exist, to come to live. What gives meaning in the life of someone to be willing to sacrifice everything for a cause? What needs to happen? That journey matters to me. The character says stuff that haunted me with Rogue One. He started to fight since he was six years old. What does that mean, exactly? Why would a six-year-old miss his childhood and start a fight? That, to me, is really interesting to know. He talks about a dark past. He talks about doing terrible stuff for the Rebellion. What is he referring to? I think that story matters. That story is interesting. There is a lot of material there for us to play. I was really excited to be able to go into that journey and give those answers.”

Genevieve O’Reilly discusses reprising her role as Mon Mothma

“We've met Mon Mothma before in different iterations of the Star Wars storytelling,” O’Reilly said. “And each time we've met her, we've met this composed, regal, dignified woman who– often like with Cassian [Andor] in Rogue One– [her duty] is to send people out on a mission.”

“For the first time we get to see the woman behind the role. We get to see a private face of Mon Mothma. We get to flesh out not just the senator, not just the would-be leader of a Rebel Alliance, but also the woman. We meet a woman steeped in Empire, navigating a very male-dominated Empire with a very powerful Emperor Palpatine at the top of it.”

Adria Arjona spoke about what she most liked about her character Bix

“Well, I liked a lot of things about Bix. I think she’s fearless. And she’s bold, yet really deep inside, she’s incredibly loyal and compassionate and cares a little too much for the people around her. And I think that’s sometimes at her own detriment. I think this boldness and powerful thing is sort of like a facade that she puts on for… She almost puts that as a show. But deep down, she cares deeply about the people around her. And I think that’s the part that I love the most about Bix.”

Kyle Soler talks about what attracted him to the role of Syril Karn 

“Well, what attracted me to the role was Tony’s writing. He had created a character that was really three-dimensional and had a big question mark over him as to, you know, he could kind of go either way. He could go into the Empire. He could go into the Rebel Alliance. And he’s got a lot of gray area. And he came from a place of such lack and it’s such a pain in his home life, that he’s trying to fill this void within himself through the fascist, corporate, bureaucratic structure, where he finds order. And he finds a place to be seen if he can supersede his station and climb those ranks. And so really, what Tony created and having a character that wasn’t really sure about himself was what kind of made it the most fun to play.”

Denise Gough on how her character Dedra Meero fits into the story

“Dedra is an ISP officer. When we meet her, she’s at the kind of low end of the ladder. And she’s incredibly ambitious and meticulous. She’s in this very male-dominated world. And she’s seeing around her the way that people are missing what she can see is happening.”

“And so yes, she’s clawing her way up the ladder. I love portraying the effect that power just has on a person, like the danger of that pursuit of power and control, regardless of gender. I mean, I do kind of love that you’re thinking oh, go girl. And then you remember, she’s in a fascist organization. I’m getting a real thrill being able to play her.”

Diego Luna on how he hopes that Andor will stand out from other Star Wars shows

“[Cassian] spends much of his time in the complexity of the gray areas, you know? In the contradictions of characters. And that’s where I think this real thing comes out of, you know?  Because it’s full of that, you know, of that experience of just being someone trying to live your life, you know, and having to make choices.  And this is a show about people, about real people, you know?  It’s very dark times in the galaxy, there is no Jedis around, these people having to articulate a reaction to oppression and it’s the most grounded kind of Star Wars you’ll get, you know?”

“It is a show about us, it is a show about these people finding the strength to come up with a reaction, you know, to change and bring change to their reality. It’s very inspiring, And it’s adventure and action at its best, what you expect from Star Wars, but then it goes very intimate and it’s very subtle and it takes time to understand each character and it has time for each storyline. And I just think it’s very rich, it’s powerful, and people are gonna like it hopefully.”

With action, adventure and suspense filmed against a cinematic landscape, the first three episodes of season one premiere exclusively on Disney+ on September 21.