Mexican-born actor Diego Luna has been performing since he was a child, appearing in telenovelas in his home country before hitting it big in director Alfonso Cuarón’s adults-only coming-of-age drama Y tu mamá también. Since then he’s had roles in acclaimed films such as Dark City, Frida, Open Range, Milk, and The Book of Life. But fans of A Galaxy Far, Far Away know him best as rebel agent Cassian Andor in 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Now Diego Luna has reprised his role as the title character in the highly anticipated new Disney+ live-action series Star Wars: Andor, set to premiere next month. And Luna recently participated in a virtual press conference to discuss his involvement in the series, both as an actor and as executive producer.
Diego Luna started out by talking about why he chose to return to the Star Wars universe. “First of all, just the chance to be back working with this family, getting to do more stuff with [showrunner Tony Gilroy, who] is someone I admire. I love his company and collaborating with him is amazing, so just being back felt great.” He then talked about the differences between Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars: Andor. “I think Rogue One is a film about an event, you know? You don't get to know those characters. You don't get to understand exactly where they come from, what needed to happen. And 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 [of Cassian Andor] says stuff that haunts me in Rogue One– that 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, and there is a lot of material there for us to play [with], so I was really excited to be able to go into that journey and give those answers. How far can someone be from learning he could be a tool of change? How far can you be from that and still find your way into acknowledging that you are capable of big stuff?” Part of the appeal of making Andor for Luna was taking the character back to his roots. “How far can we find Cassian [from where we saw him at the beginning of Rogue One]? You see the guy in the first episode and you don't see any possibility of that happening. That, to me, gives me hope in the world we live in. If that's possible, anyone can do something. We can all find what we are capable of. It's about what we find [along the way] and the people we meet in our journey.”
“I always thought of [Cassian] as a character that has been forced to move, therefore he brings a pain that he's carrying that is making him very cynical about life. [It was appealing to explore] that person and then find a way to get the clarity of someone that suddenly starts believing, that goes through a process of acknowledging that articulating something in community can give you enough strength to be useful and to bring change. It's a story I would like to tell to my kids [or] to my friends. It's a story I would like to see as [an audience member]. That's why we have to be so real. It doesn't matter [that] we pretend to be in A Galaxy Far, Far Away. This story matters today in the world we live in. Otherwise I wouldn't care. I always saw this potential in this story.” But it wasn’t all easy for Diego Luna on the set of Andor. The actor also talked about the difficult process of learning the stunts for the series. “Every part of my body ached. I felt like I went into a battle, and it was just the first rehearsal. I was talking to my family, saying ‘I don't know if I'm gonna be able to do this.’ Time passed and gladly there was a fantastic stunt [performer] that helped me and managed to do all the stuff I can't do anymore.”
Luna also commented on the positive trend of seeing more diversity in big franchise projects like this one. “I think the industry is reacting to some things happening out there, you know? We’re supposed to be a mirror, for audiences to be able to see themselves [on-screen]. I think with the [streaming] platforms and these new ways to connect with audiences, I think audiences are sending the right messages, and the industry is reacting. When you buy a ticket, you send a message. When you don't buy it, you also send a message. When you click, you send a message. When you don't, you send a message. The industry will respond to that, and it is responding. I think it makes sense if we’re talking about a galaxy where there's so many planets that people come from. And if we’re talking about refugees, they come from different places and they gather in one place and they sound different, they look different. That diversity, it's what makes this reality I live in very rich. I celebrate that the stories we see reflect on that.”
Lastly, Diego Luna spoke on what sets Andor apart from other Star Wars series available on Disney+. “First of all, this one is written by Tony Gilroy, which makes it very special– and I’ll tell you why. Tony’s not a writer that lives in the language of right and wrong, or black and white. He spends his time in the complexity of the gray areas, in the contradictions of characters. And that’s where I think this real thing comes out of, because it's full of that experience of just being someone trying to live your life, and having to make choices. This is a show about real people. It's [a] very dark time in the galaxy, there [are] no Jedi around. These people have to articulate a reaction to oppression, and it's the most grounded kind of Star Wars you'll get. It is a show about these people finding the strength to come up with a reaction to change and bring change to their reality. It's very inspiring, I think. It's huge. 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. I just think it's very rich, it's powerful, and people are hopefully gonna like it.”
Andor premieres with its first three episodes on Wednesday, September 21, exclusively via Disney+.