The next live-action Star Wars series is fast approaching. Andor stars one of the main protagonists of Rogue One, Cassian Andor (played by Diego Luna), and charts the original uprising of the Rebellion.
Star Wars often has a habit of tying in its series with other shows and films in the universe. Therefore, if you want to be prepared for Andor, we’ve rounded up everything that may be useful to watch before it airs.
We also have a similar guide for the Marvel series, She-Hulk.
Which Star Wars movies and TV shows do I need to watch to understand Andor?
This guide is based on what we know so far about Andor from trailers and news. The content may change depending on future episodes, and we will update it accordingly.
The titles that are more necessary to Andor’s storyline are marked in bold. Those in regular text aren’t quite as vital, but may still be useful to know about:
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
- Star Wars: A New Hope, (Episode IX)
- Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (Episode III)
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars
- Star Wars: Rebels
Rogue One is by far the most important film to watch on this list, as it features Cassian Andor as one of the main characters. There are also hints that other characters from this movie will appear in Andor – no spoilers here.
According to producer Tony Gilroy, you can go into Andor blind, should you wish. As it takes place five years before Rogue One, you don’t need to necessarily know his future before watching it. However, knowing the full context of Cassian’s story will no doubt add an extra layer of depth for watching this new series.
If you’re completely new to the Star Wars universe, then A New Hope is a must-see to further understand how the Empire has grown and dominated its reach over the Rebel Alliance. It’s also widely considered one of the best films in the Star Wars universe.
It may also be helpful to watch Revenge of the Sith, which in the Star Wars timeline happens before Andor starts.
Not only does this set up what the Rebels are fighting against, it also has some deleted scenes with Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly), an extremely important character in Andor that also appears in Rogue One. If you don’t want to sit through the entire film, you can watch this below:
The animated shows The Clone Wars and Rebels are also on this list because of Mon Mothma. She appears in seasons three and four of Rebels, and these episodes in The Clone Wars.
The Clone Wars is set before Andor, so there may be some useful information for her backstory to take note of. Meanwhile, Rebels takes place around the same time as Andor, so there may be some crossover events in both series.
How to watch all the shows and films ahead of Andor
Everything listed above is available to stream on Disney+ – which is where Andor will also make its debut. You can sign up for an account on the Disney+ website for $7.99/£7.99 per month, and $79.99/£79.99 per year.
Author: Hannah Cowton, Senior Entertainment Writer
Hannah Cowton is a Senior Entertainment Writer at Tech Advisor and Macworld, working across entertainment, consumer technology and lifestyle. Her interests and specialities lie in streaming services, film and television reviews and rumours, gaming, wearables and smart home products. She's also the creator of The London Geek, a geek culture and lifestyle blog.