The following article contains spoilers for Star Wars: Andor.
The newest Star Wars series is finally here with the first three episodes of Star Wars: Andor finally premiering on Disney Plus. The series seems to be impressing Star Wars fans so far, as well as doing well critically. The series is a prequel to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and follows one of the main characters of that film, Cassian Andor as played by Diego Luna.
The series follows the story of how exactly Andor got involved with the Rebel Alliance and his shadowy past which was teased in Rogue One. Aside from Cassian and the upcoming Mon Mothma, most of the cast and characters are people who have not been in the Star Wars universe so far. One of these characters is Luthen Rael, played by Stellan Skarsgård. Let’s take a look at the role this new character has in Star Wars: Andor and tell you a little bit about him.
Who is Luthen Rael?
As they seem not to be teasing too much with regards to Star Wars: Andor, we do not actually know much about Luthen and the bigger role he plays in the Star Wars universe, other than what we have managed to garner from the three episodes already released and the trailers in which he starred. We do know that he is part of the rebellion against the Empire and that he is no stranger to shady dealings.
In the third episode in which he meets Cassian, he reveals that he already knows all about him. This reinforces that the character is definitely connected in the world of Star Wars, as not only is he able to gain access to information not otherwise available but he also wanted Cassian to give him stolen technology from the Empire. It is likely that he is both a trader and a spy against the Empire, and that Luthen Rael will be Cassian’s entry into the Rebel world.
A character this central to that side of the Star Wars universe should theoretically be in the meetings of the Rebel Alliance in both Rogue One and in the original Star Wars trilogy, but he is not. Therefore either he crossed some kind of line in Star Wars: Andor, explaining his absence — he already told Cassian to murder Syril Karn — or he is killed or captured. If Cassian and Luthen take on a mentor-mentee relationship in the episodes to come, his death would certainly be enough to turn him into the jaded individual we see in Rogue One.
But as to his background and what exactly Luthen Rael is up to, we will have to keep tuning in to Star Wars: Andor to find that out. Catch Star Wars: Andor as it arrives on Disney Plus on Wednesdays.