Tony Gilroy, the creator of the critically acclaimed Star Wars series Andor, said he had to fight "intensely" to secure the show's second-season budget after Disney informed him that "streaming is dead."
Speaking at the ATX Television Festival (via IndieWire), Gilroy confirmed that Andor's staggering production cost reached $650 million—surpassing the budgets of any recent Star Wars sequel trilogy film and nearly doubling the cost of Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Still, Gilroy stated that Disney ultimately agreed to fund Andor's equally expensive second season, despite the series attracting fewer viewers than the Disney+ hit The Mandalorian. This decision came amid broader concerns about the profitability of high-cost Disney+ projects following several expensive but underperforming Marvel series.
"For Disney, this $650 million is a major investment," Gilroy noted, emphasizing that the studio gave him creative freedom over the show's content. Indeed, Andor includes themes rarely seen in the Star Wars universe—such as discussions of rape and genocide, as well as scenes set in a brothel.
"Throughout all 24 episodes, I never received a single note," Gilroy continued, though he acknowledged one exception. "We originally included the line 'F*** the Empire' in the first season, and they asked, 'Could you please change that?'" (This refers to dialogue spoken by Maarva in the first-season finale, which was ultimately revised to "Fight the Empire.")
"For Season 2, Disney told us, 'Streaming is dead, and we don’t have the same budget as before,' so we negotiated vigorously over finances, but they never interfered with the content. That creative freedom comes with responsibilities."
Every IGN Andor Review
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These responsibilities meant delivering a series whose quality matched its enormous budget—a goal which most critics agree Gilroy achieved.
"Season 2 of Andor builds on nearly everything that worked so well in Season 1, further enriching the prequel era of Star Wars," IGN wrote in its spoiler-free review of Andor Season 2. "Gilroy and his team skillfully weave dramatic irony inherent in a prequel into the narrative, making this season the franchise's most compelling entry in years."
