Diego Luna Reveals His 'Star Wars' Future After 'Andor' Season 2

Actor Diego Luna never expected to return to the character of Cassian Andor after he met a grim fate at the end of 2016’s “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”

That being said, the 43-year-old actor has returned for a Disney+ prequel series called "Andor." The first season of the two-part series wrapped last year, helmed by showrunner Tony Gilroy.

Although there are more stories to explore in the galaxy far, far away, Luna revealed that he is glad to wrap up his time with Cassian after he finishes filming season 2 and leaves the franchise in his rearview mirror.

In a March 2023 interview with Variety, Diego Luna revealed that the limited series is important for his mental health. "It is just a two-season show, which is really important for my mental health," he said. "But knowing this is the end, I want to enjoy it and get the best out of this experience."

Although fighting the Empire is taking its toll on Cassian, Luna said that he jumped at the chance to return to the character after “Rogue One” because there was so much of Cassian’s background that was worth exploring.

"What this character does in Rogue One is quite remarkable, and what we are building shows what needs to happen in someone's life to be willing to sacrifice everything," he said. "For me, this has always been a story where the people bringing change, the ones you can call heroes, are just regular people doing extraordinary things."

Even though some fans are disappointed that the series only has two seasons, Luna isn’t. Instead, he said that it was “really nice to approach a series knowing there’s an ending,” adding, “It doesn’t happen.”

"The new conversation on set with streaming is people talking about the possible future. Like, 'Well, there might be a second season or a third season.' This thing of leaving everything open I think is bringing anxiety to actors that need to be treated,” he explained. “We're all thinking about something that we can't know."

Although the release date for season 2 of “Andor” has yet to be released, showrunner Tony Gilroy previously told Collider that season 2 will shoot between start filming in August 2023, suggesting a potential 2024 or even 2025 release.

In a conversation with Entertainment Weekly following the season 1 finale, Diego Luna said, "You're gonna have to wait a little bit because each season is like four movies, you know? So, it takes time.” He added, "The only thing I can promise is that we'll do it with the same respect, rigor, intensity, and energy."

In a separate interview on Entertainment Weekly‘s Star Wars podcast, Dagobah Dispatch, Diego Luna revealed that he is done with the character of Cassian Andor for good, even though there has been fan speculation about a prequel series of the prequel series.

When asked, Luna quickly shut down the idea that he would return for a prequel of a prequel. “No, impossible,” he said. “It would have to be someone else, man. I’m not getting any younger, so it definitely would have to be someone else.”

Although he doesn’t plan on appearing in any future Star Wars projects, he still said that he had a “beautiful journey” with his character. “For me, this is it. It’s a beautiful journey now that I have 24 episodes, 24 shorter films, to tell the story of where Cassian comes from and how he got to be the man we met in Rogue One,” he said.

So what does he plan to do now? As he told Variety, he plans to slow down and leave the streaming world behind him for a bit. Instead of planning rebellions and shooting blasters, Diego Luna admitted that he is interested in returning to theater work.

Although he has yet to be attached to any project, he joked, “There’s one another thing I love about theater: you sleep every night in the same bed.”

Fortunately for Star Wars fans, there are still many more Disney+ shows in the works, including "Ahsoka," "The Acolyte," and "Skeleton Crew." Season 3 of "The Mandalorian" is currently streaming.