A new Star Wars: Andor trailer and release date arrived today in a bit of a "I've got good news, and I've got bad news" kind of moment. Yes, shortly before we expected it to arrive, Star Wars' latest show seems to have had some engine difficulties that delayed it until next month.
In an email to the press, Disney Plus announced that Andor will release on Wednesday, September 21, instead of its original Wednesday, August 31 date (a delay of three weeks). The first three episodes will drop on this date.
Along with this news, the first full Andor trailer came out, and you can check it out right now:
Moody and apprehensive, the trailer continues to show us the point of view of regular civilians trying to survive during the Empire's reign. Andor takes place between Episodes III and IV, and right before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (see the chronology in our Star Wars movies in order explainer).
The trailer is all about Cassian Andor's tension of becoming someone who breaks into the empire to take it down. The trailer also shows us Stellan Skarsgard’s Luthen Rael, who seems to be a good guy (something of a surprise). It's also our first look at the return of Forest Whitaker's Saw Gerrera.
Analysis: Andor moved as Disney Plus scheduling spreads out
While this trailer is neat, the big news here is that Disney is not as interested in staggering its big shows on top of each other.
As you may remember, Obi-Wan Kenobi hit on May 27, shortly followed by Ms. Marvel dropping on June 8. For weeks, new episodes of the shows arrived together on Wednesday mornings. Now, She-Hulk's August 17 date will have a breather gap of five weeks before Andor arrives. They will only overlap for four weeks.
While fans who want to watch both shows and do so before work in the morning may be relieved the shows won't be doubled up, this is primarily important for Disney Plus. This change could be due to the service seemingly trying to keep people subscribed for more months, so you can't cancel earlier. Andor (a 12-episode series) now finishes on November 23, 2022, as opposed to the start of that month.
It's arguably the last big title on the Disney Plus calendar this year, though the Guardians of the Galaxy holiday special is due later this year as well. We estimate Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever won't hit Disney Plus until around December 28 — giving people reason to take a month off. Without this, subscribers could have waited longer between canceling Disney Plus and coming back.
