There has been a ton of exciting Star Wars content released since Lucasfilm was acquired by Disney, including both movies and live-action TV shows. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story broke new ground as the first standalone movie from the franchise, eventually inspiring the acclaimed TV spinoff Andor. Actor Diego Luna played Cassian in both of these projects, and he recently debunked a Darth Vader ending rumor related to Rogue One.
Gareth Edwards’ Rogue One covered the time directly before A New Hope, with its ending even directly connecting to George Lucas’ beloved original movie. The movie also included a truly badass scene of Darth Vader ripping apart Rebels, although there was a rumor that he could have been the one to kill Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor. He was recently asked by the Star Wars Sith Council about those Vader rumors, responding with:
The first time I was asked to sit down with the director, in Los Angeles, I was asked into a restaurant, and the restaurant was empty. He was giving his back to the wall with his computer open and he asked me to sit down next to him. He started telling me a story and kept saying ‘And then this girl, and then this guy, and then this girl, and then this guy…’ And started showing me drawings and concept art, and then at the end, I was like ‘Why is he phrasing it that way?’ And he goes like ‘I want you to play the guy’. And I go like, 'What?' Then he said, ‘If you want to, now we have to convince everyone else, but I would love to do this with you.’ And I said like ‘Wow, perfect. I would love to.’ And the story he pitched me is the one we saw, in terms of beginning and end. Many things changed on the way but not the end.
There you have it. It looks like the story that was pitched to Diego Luna about Rogue One ended up being pretty accurate to what was seen on screen. And neither one included the Milk actor being personally killed off by Darth Vader. Although that does sound pretty epic.
Diego Luna’s comments help to peel back the curtain on what it was actually like working on Rogue One, starting with how he got involved in the galaxy far, far away. It was the first movie of its kind, and fans ended up really responding to seeing a story without any Jedi. And it also featured a gut punch of an ending for Andor and Jyn Erso.
The ragtag group of rebels in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story were ultimately going on a suicide mission. And throughout its third act we watched each member fall in order to procure the plans for the Death Star. Jyn and Andor were the last ones alive, and embraced as the planet of Scarif itself was blown up by the Empire. It’s a gorgeous sequence, and arguably a more powerful sequence than having Darth Vader brought in.
Darth Vader was a relatively small role in Rogue One, but fans went crazy seeing the franchise’s mascot back on the big screen. On top of being at his castle on Mustafar, we also got to see him light that red lightsaber and brutally dispatch a group of enemies. Most recently Vader appeared in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, including a return from Hayden Christensen.
Diego Luna can be seen in both Andor and Rogue One on Disney+, with his spinoff already being renewed for Season 2. In the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your trips to the theater in the New Year. Just don’t expect to see any Star Wars titles on that list.
