If "Andor" - which returns on April 22 for its second and final season - is being hailed as one of the best Star Wars TV series ever, it's due in large part to the rawer, more mature approach taken by its creator, Tony Gilroy.
That point of view -- far, far removed from the family-friendly tone often found in the Disney-empire-run Star Wars universe -- should come as no surprise to those who watched the 2002 action thriller The Bourne Identity, which Gilroy wrote.
Its genesis is already evident in the 2016 "Star Wars" film "Rogue One," which Gilroy co-wrote -- and which serves as the climax to "Andor," the story of the rebellion that led to the events in that film.
"It's all emotionally charged" because "we're getting closer to 'Rogue One,'" Diego Luna, the actor who plays protagonist Cassian Andor, told AFP.
For Disney, the success of "Andor" stands out as a new hope for the franchise, which has received mixed reviews from audiences in recent years.
That's why it's betting big on the 12-episode story, which cost a staggering $645 million to make, according to Forbes magazine.
Where "Rogue One" was about the rebels' suicide mission to steal the plans for the Death Star, with "heroes who sacrifice everything for the cause," "Andor" is about how one of those heroes "gets to that situation," Luna said.
Unlike the typical hero's journey, the series explores the motivations and dark sides of both camps: the Rebels and the Empire. He spends time with figures such as a Rebel Alliance operative played by Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård.
Gilroy, who spoke to AFP with Luna during his visit to Paris, said the original plan was for five seasons of "Andor," but he realized there was "no physical way to do it" given "the amount of work required."
The result is two seasons, but with episodes that are "more intense, more complex in every possible way," Luna said.
After the first season ended at the end of 2022 with a staggering 96-percent rating on critic aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has a stellar rating on streaming platform Disney+.
This season launches on the small screen starting Tuesday, April 22, in the United States or Wednesday (April 23) in France, Germany, Italy and other territories. | BGNES