Andor actor Genevieve O’Reilly is excited to meet her new fans. She’s even more excited for them to get to know her character, Mon Mothma. Although Mothma, one of the Alliance’s greatest leaders, has been featured in each of the three Star Wars film trilogies, O’Reilly believes that it’s in Andor that they’ll come to know her best as a fully-realized person.
O’Reilly, who has played Mothma since 2005’s Revenge of the Sith, recently spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the show and what it meant to bring the legendary Star Wars character to life unlike ever before.
“The idea of learning about this character — for me, as much as for anyone else — through a long-form narrative was really interesting. We have now the chance to get to know the woman. Previously, she was a bit of a pillar, or maybe a statue. I love that now we get to excavate that a little bit and learn about the human being — the woman behind the gown, if you will.”
—Genevieve O’Reilly,
The events in Andor take place approximately five years before the events of Star Wars: A New Hope and while it will follow the adventures of thief turned Rebellion agent Cassian Andor it will also feature storylines dealing with an ensemble of characters including Mon Mothma, the Chandrilan Senator who secretly helped to co-found the rebellion against the Galactic Empire.
The show’s first season will feature a 12-episode run — unprecedented for the Star Wars TV series so far. It has also been pre-approved for a second season. The series will tell the tale of the formation of the Alliance and, if successful, might have a greater scope than any series that has preceded it.
“Even though it’s called Andor, it’s about a revolution,” Diego Luna, who plays the title role told EW. “It’s an ensemble. It’s about a group of people. It’s about community. You’ll have the chance to meet many characters you don’t know and visit places you don’t know existed in this galaxy.”
Andor is scheduled to premiere on Disney Plus on August 31.
