Star Wars seems to be all about bringing back old characters these days. It's gotten to the point where even characters best known for a single appearance 5 years ago (including a brief animated appearance before that) have garnered enough nostalgia to warrant a return. That seems to be the case with Forest Whitaker's take on rebel extremist Saw Gerrera, whom fans might just see again soon in Andor.
A slip of the tongue in a recent interview from actor Stellan Skarsgård, set to appear in an unknown role on the upcoming Disney Plus series Andor, might have just revealed Whitaker's return as the brutal guerilla freedom fighter. According to Skarsgård, who spoke to Swedish radio station Sverigesradio.se, the two had apparently just filmed a scene together, suggesting that not only is Whitaker returning as Gerrera but that he's already begun working on the project.
This appears to confirm rumors that had already been swirling around, stemming from claims that Whitaker had previously been spotted on the set of Andor. It wouldn't be all that farfetched, given the timeline of the series. While set before the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (when Gerrera appeared to first meet Diego Luna's title character Cassian Andor), it clearly won't be taking place that far in the past. So while he may not interact with Luna's character, there are plenty of opportunities for such a character to make an appearance.
Andor follows Luna's previously mentioned character from Rogue One during an unspecified period of time before the film. A dedicated member of the Rebel Alliance, Andor likely has a lot of stories to be told throughout his time with the freedom fighters, as he'd clearly already been an established member of the group for a while by the time Rogue One began. The possible presence of Whitaker also gives the idea that the series won't just focus on Andor himself, but might also give attention to the happenings in other areas during his Rebel heyday.
Even though Andor didn't meet Gerrera before Rogue One, many still suspected Whitaker would appear in the series in some form. After all, both the character and actor are too big to ignore during the general time period in which Andor will be taking place. With Gerrera even appearing in the recent video game Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order, it's clear that Disney has every intention to take full advantage of what they have.
It's still unknown exactly how substantial Whitaker's role will be in the series, and he still hasn't been officially confirmed. But it seems pretty cut and dry at this point, and it will be good to see him in character once again. After all, both the actor and character tend to signify big things happening, the kind of big things that probably require a helmet.
Star Wars: Andor is expected to premiere on Disney Plus in 2022.
Source: The Playlist