With the recent Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) and Writers Guild of America (WGA) strikes, a number of shows and films have been forced to halt production and filming due to a lack of either writers or actors or both. Among them is Star Wars: Andor, which is hitting the brakes just weeks away from wrapping its second season.
According to a report from Deadline, the SAG-AFTRA strike that began a week ago hit Andor just as it was about to close up shop on season two, and it's currently stumbling along with a handful of actors who are under agreements with British acting union Equity and who are not a part of the SAG-AFTRA strike. These actors have reportedly been told they could be sued for breach of contract for walking off the set in solidarity. But even so, Deadline's report does not expect Andor to be able to wrap shooting with the Equity actors alone.
Previously, Andor creator Tony Gilroy told Deadline that he felt studios were being "recklessly careless" with the industry, and that both SAG-AFTRA and WAG were "trying to preserve" it. Gilroy is also on strike, as a member of SAG-AFTRA.
Meanwhile, numerous other productions are similarly on hold at varying staging of completion, including Deadpool 3 and the upcoming Community movie. Some overseas productions however, such as House of the Dragon, have continued with the majority of their actors members of Equity rather than SAG-AFTRA.
SAG-AFTRA voted to strike last week after failing to reach an agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) to ratify a new contract. The guild joins WGA, which has been on strike since May. Both groups are demanding better pay, job security, and assurances against the encroachment of AI amid worries that jobs currently done by humans will eventually be replaced.
As for the second and final season of Andor, it's currently planned for release on Disney Plus in August of 2024, but it's possible it sees a delay as a result of the pause in filming. We called the first season "one of the very best TV shows of the year and as good as Star Wars has been in a long, long time" in our review.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.
