Another show caves to the ongoing battle of the WGA and AMPTP! Since May 2, 2023, the Writers Guild of America has been on strike to demand better compensation from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Since then, several shows have halted production of their upcoming season or episodes to support the writers getting a fair deal.
Now, Star Wars: Andor joins the lot. While the script for season 2 was handed in a day before the official date of the strike, showrunner and producer Tony Gilroy has pulled out of the show’s development and has suspended writing.
The creator faced backlash from some of his fellow writers prior to his statement via THR that all non-writing productions have been ceased from his end.
Read the following quote from his comment on the situation:
I discontinued ALL writing and writing-related work on ANDOR prior to midnight, May 1. After being briefed on the Saturday showrunner meeting, I informed Chris Keyser at the WGA on Sunday morning that I would also be ceasing ALL non-writing producing functions.
The creator’s departure from the sets of the Rogue One spinoff delivers a huge blow to season 2’s development. Of course, Lucasfilm and Disney can continue without Gilroy since the script is complete. But his vision and expertise brought something intangible to the show that cannot be easily replicated.
Another option is to halt production altogether until the strike is over. However, that is a risky and unpredictable route since there is no guessing when AMPTP will negotiate a fair compromise with the WGA.
A third and more viable option for the show is to continue production and subject it to reshoots with Gilroy once the cloud of the strike no longer overshadows the series. But that, too, is an expensive and more roundabout way.
Past patterns of other strikes dictate that the AMPTP will diffuse the situation in a few months, but nothing is set in stone. What do you make of this disappointing new development for Star Wars: Andor season 2? Drop your comments below!
About Andor
Andor is an American television series created by Tony Gilroy for the streaming service Disney+. It is a prequel to the Star Wars film Rogue One (2016), following the character Cassian Andor five years before the events of the film.
Set five years before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Andor will see Cassian in his formative years as he becomes the charismatic Rebel and espionage master.
Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk, Stellan Skarsgaard, Adria Arjona, Fiona Shaw, and others star in the show. The series premiered on Disney+ on September 21, 2022, with the first three episodes.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
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