Here's Why Princess Leia's Dad Suddenly Looks Totally Different in Star Wars' 'Andor'
Although Andor is very much its own Star Wars TV series, it still has to follow some of the rules of the faraway galaxy. And, because the series takes place so close to the events of Rogue One and the original 1977 movie, A New Hope, it makes sense why certain characters and locations are popping up in this show. In the most recent block of Andor episodes, one familiar character suddenly had a brand-new face.
Here's why Princess Leia's adoptive father, Bail Organa, is now played by actor Benjamin Bratt, not Jimmy Smits.
"The scheduling didn’t work out," Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy told EW, referencing the fact that he had wanted to bring back Smits again, but couldn't. "We really tried hard, but he [Smits] wasn't available and couldn't make it.”
Back in 2002, George Lucas cast Smits in the role of Bail for Attack of the Clones. He then appeared in Revenge of the Sith in 2005, Rogue One in 2016, and recently in 2022 in Obi-Wan Kenobi.
The Star Wars franchise has, of course, recast characters before. But usually a major recast was done because too much time had passed. In this case, it was simply a case that Smits couldn't commit to the new season. Ironically, Smits shared scenes with Genevieve O'Reilly as Mon Mothma in Revenge of the Sith, but those were ultimately cut from the film.
So, now, O'Reilly's Mon Mothma is, of course, a huge part of Andor, and Smits has been replaced. Basically, twenty years after O'Reilly was cut from Episode III, we're experiencing the wrath of Mon Mothma, and, accidentally, the sidelining of Smits
Bratt's Bail Organa will appear in several episodes of Andor. There are six episodes left at this point. The next three episodes drop next Tuesday on May 6.