Another show has fallen victim to the SAG-AFTRA strike. Deadline reports the Disney+ series, Andor, has been forced to pause production on its second season in the U.K. Sources say the show was close to being complete, which was set to have a 2024 release.
According to Deadline, sources state actors with agreements under the British union, Equity, may continue to film. These actors are within their right to object to filming along with their American counterparts, but risk breaching their contracts which could result in them being sued.
The critically-acclaimed series stars Deigo Luna (Narcos: Mexico, The Book of Life) as his Rogue One character, Cassian Andor, five years prior to the events of the Star Wars prequel film. Described as a political espionage thriller, the series follows Cassian from his rebellious roots to becoming a fully-radicalized member of the Resistance. The show also stars Kyle Soller (Marrowbone, Poldark), Genevieve O’Reilly (The Secret, Tin Star), Adria Arjona (Father of the Bride, 6 Underground), Stellan Skarsgård (Mamma Mia, Dune), Fiona Shaw (Killing Eve, Enola Holmes), Denise Gough (Under the Banner of Heaven, Monday), Alan Tudyk (Resident Alien, Harley Quinn), and Forest Whitaker (Godfather of Harlem, The Butler).
This isn’t the first strike casualty for the Emmy-nominated series. Creator and showrunner Tony Gilroy, (Michael Clayton, The Bourne Legacy) member of the Writer’s Guild of America, ceased both producing and writing duties on the series prior to the beginning of the writers’ strike in early May. Gilroy has been very vocal about the state of writers in the industry and how “carelessly reckless” the studios have been toward them.
“I think SAG and the Writers Guild are trying to preserve our industry,” Gilroy told Deadline last week. “In such a strange way, we’ve become the creators and the interpreters, the creative community are becoming the protectors of this industry, this huge industry that people love.”
The first season of Andor is available to stream on Disney+.