Andor Cast: Meet the New Star Wars Characters

“The longform narrative gives us the time and the space to investigate Mon Mothma not just as a leader but as a woman, not just a politician but as wife, not just as a senator but also a woman who has a cultural history behind her,” O’Reilly tells Den of Geek. “I think this is the first time we have the time to think about what does the life look like of a woman who has been representing her planet since the age of 16? What might the culture of that planet be that a woman is in that position at 16? What are the constructs of that world? And how does that inform everything we know about Mon Mothma? It allows us to see how much she has to risk, what her sacrifice is. It’s five years before we get to Rogue One so we have a lot to learn about her.”

It’s no exaggeration to call Stellan Skarsgard a cinema legend, with a filmography that goes all the way back to the late ’60s in his native Sweden. In the nerd world, we may know him best from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, David Fincher’s The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, his recurring role as Dr. Erik Selvig in the MCU, as Father Merrin in two competing Exorcist prequels from the early 2000s, and as the cruel and grotesque Baron Harkonnen in Denis Villeneuve’s film adaptation of Dune. If you’re looking for stuff outside of genre fare, he’s also collaborated several times with director Lars von Trier, including for the apocalyptic drama Melancholia. He’s also in The Hunt for Red October and Good Will Hunting!

In Andor, Skarsgard plays a recruiter who is looking to stoke rebellion against the Empire in different corners of the galaxy. But he’s also living a double life on Coruscant, one that also puts him in contact with Mon Mothma. It definitely looks like Luthen Rael is key to the formation o the Rebel Alliance.

Pre-Mor officer Syril Karn brings big hall monitor energy to the Star Wars galaxy, a glorified security guard with delusions of grandeur. Instead of letting the crimes happening in the “corporate sector” of space he patrols, as is the status quo with Pre-Mor, Syril yearns to do some actual police work. It’s just too bad he’s also so incredibly ill-prepared for an actual fight, as we learn in the third episode. An absolute loser.

While born in the US, Kyle Soller trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, and has starred in several theater productions on both sides of the pond, winning an Olivier Award for his performance in The Inheritance. You’ve seen him on British TV as well, including in Poldark, An Inspector Calls, and Bounty Hunters. His jump to the galaxy far, far away has been a very welcome addition so far, and we’re really looking forward to seeing more sides of Syril. You’ll find out a bit more about him in episode 4…

Fiona Shaw is another absolute legend making her long-awaited Star Wars debut. In Andor, she plays Maarva, Cassian’s adoptive mother on Ferrix. We learn much about how the two first met in episode 3 as well as what Maarva’s life was like during the Clone Wars. It’s clear she’s been rebelling much longer than anyone else on the show.