Andor, which returns to Disney+ for its second and final season in April, has a reputation for being the most mature Star Wars TV show yet — not just in its concept, but in its language.
You can see that clearly in a new official Andor season 1 recap video, which contains multiple references to the "bastards" of the Empire. You can see it in the first known use of "shit" in the galaxy far, far away. But you almost saw more extreme language in the season finale speech from Maarva (Fiona Shaw), adopted mother of Cassian Andor (Diego Luna).
"Fight the Empire," Maarva says in one of the show's most emotive scenes, rousing a riot via her pre-recorded holographic self-eulogy. But as Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy confirmed to Mashable, his script actually called for Maarva to say, "Fuck the Empire" — and that was a problem for the stewards of the Star Wars brand at Lucasfilm.
"That one word... It was always like, 'Hey, we're going to put it in there, it kind of works, and here's why we think you should do it," Gilroy told Mashable.
The famed Hollywood director even wrote a memo so extensive that he has previously described it as "a legal brief" laying out the reasons why this particular expletive would be appropriate at this pivotal point in his story.
But Lucasfilm held firm. Unlike the Star Trek franchise, Star Wars has never dropped an f-bomb — and introducing it might also introduce too many questions in fans' minds.
For example, if this word exists in the Star Wars universe, how come it was never heard in the cantina on Tatooine, that supposed "hive of scum and villainy"?
"It wasn't a fight," Gilroy said of his tangle with Lucasfilm over the memo. "It was a discussion, the way it should be." Now, looking back on this debate and its relative merits, Gilroy admitted, "they were right" to focus on the fight.
"The whole experience with Kathy [Kennedy, Lucasfilm president] and Lucasfilm and Disney, all the way through from Rogue One... I mean, nobody has ever messed with us at all," Gilroy said. "The gamble they've taken with us, the way they've backed our play, it's extraordinary. It's the thing every filmmaker dreams about.
"They've been unbelievable. So yeah, they were right."
No word yet on the amount of cursing in Andor season 2. But you can guarantee there isn't a single f-bomb as Cassian travels down the road of rebellion towards the explosion that kills him at the end of Rogue One.
