With The Mandalorian‘s third season now complete, Star Wars fans are beginning to look forward to the future. Right now, things are looking bright. The next major release will be Star Wars Jedi: Survivor on consoles and PC next week, which will continue the saga of Jedi Knight Cal Kestis, his personal battle with the Empire, and the lost secrets of the High Republic.
Then Star Wars Visions will return in May with what’s looking like a barnstorming anthology of animated features from around the world. In August the hugely anticipated Ahsoka will arrive, followed later in the year by the interesting-looking Skeleton Crew. Further out we have The Acolyte, more Tales of the Jedi, and the long-awaited return of Star Wars to the silver screen with The Rise of Skywalker sequel continuing Rey’s story.
It’s a good time to be a fan of all things set in a galaxy far, far away. That said, there’s always the potential for a spanner to be tossed into the works, and right now Andor‘s second season is dealing with a dangerous situation that’s completely out of their control.
Deadly landslides threaten ‘Andor’ season two
Andor‘s second season is currently filming across the United Kingdom, with attendees at the Star Wars Celebration getting a sneak peek at the footage already in the can. Right now the team is in Dorset on the south coast of England, where they’re filming in Winspit Quarry. In the first season, this location became Saw Gerrera’s hideout, so we think this means he’ll be returning in style in the second season, perhaps taking a more hands-on approach with Cassian’s missions.
But “turbulent weather” has brought things to a standstill, with Dorset Live reporting that they currently cannot proceed on safety grounds. According to the National Trust, which owns the site:
“The planned filming due to take place at Winspit Quarry has been cancelled due to safety concerns following the recent turbulent weather, which has increased the risk of rockfalls and landslips. Visitors looking to explore the Dorset Coast are advised to follow signs and keep out of unsafe areas until further surveys have been undertaken.”
We’re sure the show will resume soon, though the Star Wars franchise has a long history of being adversely affected by the weather. A New Hope was bedeviled by sandstorms while filming Tatooine in Tunisia, Norwegian filming of the Hoth sequences of The Empire Strikes Back was stopped by a blizzard, and in 2021 Andor itself saw its sets damaged by an unexpectedly strong storm.
Here’s hoping they can continue soon.
Lars Mikkelsen teases Thrawn’s arrival in ‘Ahsoka’
We’ve known Grand Admiral Thrawn was on the way to Disney Plus ever since The Mandalorian‘s second season episode “The Jedi”. There, Ahsoka Tano revealed she was hunting for her Imperial adversary, and after another name-drop in The Mandalorian season three and a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance in the Ahsoka trailer, it’s finally time for one of the best Star Wars villains to arrive in live-action.
Collider spoke to Mikkelsen about Dave Filoni’s treatment of the character, and he had nothing but positive things to say:
“His writing is very good, it’s very strong. All characters have their own… You will probably not know, totally, know what it’s all about until the last scene. And I like that in writing, that you take you the audience so seriously that we drag it right to the last moment to reveal what the whole thing was about.”
He was also asked about what it’s like playing a very smart character:
“That’s what you want as an actor. You don’t want to reveal everything, you want to keep your secrets, and when it’s within the script it’s the best because it’s effortless in that sense. You only play the moment then, because the story writing is so good that it will tell it for you.”
Mikkelsen defined the role in his appearances on the animated shows, so we can’t wait to see him in live action in Ahsoka. Whether he’ll go on to be the new Star Wars big bad over multiple Disney Plus shows (and movies?) remains to be seen, but we’re here for this blue-skinned baddie.
The first impressions of ‘Star Wars: Visions’ season two are in
Whoever at Lucasfilm came up with the idea of approaching some of the finest animation studios on the planet and letting them go nuts with non-canon Star Wars stories deserves a raise. Visions‘ first season was a wonderful watch, and everything we’ve seen of season two looks like it’s going to follow in that vein.
Now some early reviews are in, and the response couldn’t be better. The Direct dubs it “absolutely incredible and stunningly beautiful“, Murphy’s Multiverse says it showcases “the beauty and diversity of animation“, The Resistance podcast’s Lacey Gilleran claims it’ll take “you on adventures you could never imagine“, and Meghan Cooper singles out the first episode as “pure animation magic“.
Our only complaint is that we haven’t been sent a copy! C’mon Lucasfilm, we loved Visions and the wait for season two has been excruciating. Oh well, at least there’s not too much longer to wait, as the full season will debut on Star Wars Day, May 4.