Tony Gilroy—the creator behind Disney+'s hit Andor series, which focuses on Diego Luna's Rogue One character Cassian Andor—defended Cassian's romance with Felicity Jones' Jyn Erso in the 2016 Star Wars: A New Hope prequel despite now having the context of his prior relationship with Adria Arjona's Bix Caleen. One of the key plot threads throughout the acclaimed Star Wars streaming show was Cassian and Bix's love story, with Arjorna's character ultimately leaving Andor behind in hopes that he would devote himself to the Rebellion.
Speaking as part of a recent interview, Tony Gilroy addressed fan concerns about Cassian's openness to a romance with Jyn Erso in Rogue One coming so soon after his relationship with long-time friend Bix Kaleen. Bix leaving Cassian in Andor Season 2 was one of the defining moments of the series, knowing if she had stayed, Diego Luna's Rebel pilot would have left the cause, and they would not have accomplished their mission of taking down the Empire (something seamlessly set up in Andor's Season 2 finale).
Gilroy described his thinking in having Cassian jump from Bix to Jyn, telling Vulture that he "[doesn't] think the relationship is inconsistent with the circumstances." He admitted that by the time Jyn and Cassian embark on their Rogue One suicide mission, "Bix has been away for a year," and given their dire circumstances, "Whose hand wouldn’t you hold at the end:"
"Having been deeply involved in 'Rogue' … I don’t think the relationship is inconsistent with the circumstances. Bix has been away for a year. And, you know, it’s a frat house there at the end, and who knows where she is. And she left him. You know, they’re beautiful, lively people. Whose hand wouldn’t you hold at the end? I think it turns into that, which is cooler and more interesting. Maybe I’ll be wrong when I watch it."
He disclosed that he "[hasn't] gone back and watched Rogue One," so he may be wrong, but he does not think so:
"I have not gone back and watched Rogue One. Everybody else has, and I’ve been clearly timid about doing that. I was doing the dishes a couple of months ago and it was on, and I watched about 15 minutes and it was like, Wow, this is all okay! But everybody around me has done it, and I’ve been confirmed that everything is really cool."
Speaking directly to fans, the Andor creator said that he respects the "huge investment" fans make in the Star Wars canon, but "it can’t be a motivation for [him] building the show:"
"On the downside, I know there are people, whole fan-fiction collections, who’ve made a huge investment in that being one of the great love stories of all time. It’s not canon, but they’ve invested a lot of time in it. It’s not without concern that I undo that, but it can’t be a motivation for me building the show."
Bix and Andor's romance was a slow burn in Andor, with the characters eventually finding each other and joining the Rebellion together. However, after Cassian's commitment to the cause wavered about midway through Season 2, Bix opted to get up and leave. She found a home elsewhere in the galaxy and promised to find Andor again after the fight with the Empire.
The two never saw each other again, as Andor died during the Rebels' attack on Scarif after successfully transmitting the Death Star plans to the Alliance Fleet above (read about a recent Rogue One change made following the end of Andor).
Andor Season 2 concluded on Disney+. The show told the story of Diego Luna's Cassian Andor from the beginning until his appearance in 2016's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, recounting his origins within the Rebel alliance alongside both new and returning Star Wars characters like Bix Kaleen (Adria Arjona), Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård), and Mon Mothma (Genevieve O'Reilly).
Why Cassian's Jyn Erso Romance Makes Sense After Andor
Even though much of Andor was spent telling the story of how devoted Cassian was to Bix Kaleen, his romance with Jyn Erso in Rogue One can still make sense in the Star Wars canon.
As evidenced by Bix's speech upon leaving Andor in Season 2, Episode 9, she knows she is giving up their relationship for the good of the Rebellion and had to have known that could mean Cassian may meet someone else. Well, that just happened to be Jyn as he assembled a team to retrieve the Death Star plans from the Imperial research base on Scarif.
It is not as though Cassian and Jyn got together weeks after Bix left Yavin. The pair does not show any signs of romantic feelings until they are sitting on the beach watching their inevitable death inch toward them at the end of the film.
As Gilroy said, who wouldn't want company at the end of the world?
That seemingly happens between Jyn and Cassian in Rogue One's closing moments. With their death looming right in front of them, they hold each other, knowing they would rather go out in someone's arms than alone and thinking of those they are leaving behind.
Perhaps Cassian saw some of Bix in Jyn at that moment, being another hero of the Rebellion so incredibly devoted to the cause that she was willing to tear her life apart for it.
Then, as they looked at the fiery death ray on the horizon, Cassian held Jyn, knowing that he had not only helped Jyn realize her dreams of striking a significant blow to the Empire but also Bix's.
