The problem which most prequels face is simple — they're prequels, which means that audiences already know more than they should about how the story ends. For example, ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY told the tale of how the Rebels stole the plans to the Death Star, but thanks to the first STAR WARS film, we already know that they were successful and that many, if not all, died transmitting the plans to the Rebels. The upcoming Cassian Andor series faces this same problem, only doubly so as the series is a prequel to a prequel.
While speaking with IndieWire, Cassian Andor himself, Diego Luna, spoke of the challenges which the upcoming series will face.
I can’t really talk about it. The thing I can tell you, and it’s a nice challenge and it’s a great way to approach a show, but what happens when you already know the ending? Then it becomes about the story. Everything is in how you tell the story and how many different layers you can find. This can’t be a show now where at the end we surprise you with like, ‘Oh no it wasn’t him!’ We’ve already seen the ending.
"If you think about it, ‘Rogue One’ started with the same task," Luna continued. "The last scene of ‘Rogue One’ is a scene we all know. It makes another part of your brain work [as a storyteller]. You can’t use the same formulas for storytelling you’ve known all your life with this because it’s very different. The big thing is now we start with a character that people already know what he’s capable of." While it remains to be seen what type of story the ROGUE ONE series will tackle, I'm certainly not about to hold its prequel-status against it.
According to ComicBookMovie, pre-production on the ROGUE ONE prequel series had been underway for about six weeks until the COVID-19 pandemic forced them to shut down. The series has been described as a "rousing spy thriller will explore tales filled with espionage and daring missions to restore hope to a galaxy in the grip of a ruthless Empire." In a statement released when the project was first announced, Diego Luna said:
Going back to the Star Wars universe is very special for me. I have so many memories of the great work we did together and the relationships I made throughout the journey. We have a fantastic adventure ahead of us, and this new exciting format will give us the chance to explore this character more deeply.
Diego Luna will also be joined by Alan Tudyk in the series, who will be reprising his role of K-2SO, Cassian's droid sidekick. In addition to the Cassian Andor series, we've also got the second season of The Mandalorian as well as an Obi-Wan Kenobi series starring Ewan McGregor to look forward to as well.
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