Star Wars recently confirmed that Andor previously had two different titles before Lucasfilm settled on the Andor name, and, quite frankly, the other options were better. Andor changed the landscape of Star Wars forever. Before the series was released, many fans had no idea that it would be regarded as one of the best pieces of Star Wars content of all time, if not the best. Now that the Disney+ show is over, Lucasfilm and Disney are revealing more details about its creation and development process.
According to the official art book for Andor (the book is titled The Art of Star Wars: Andor), the highly acclaimed Star Wars series was not always planned to be titled Andor, and instead was originally given two other names before the studio chose Andor as the final title. Specifically, the art book revealed that Andor's first title was Star Wars: Alliance. After that, the studio toyed around with the idea of titling it Star Wars: Andor Five.
Both of these proposed titles for Andor came before Tony Gilroy joined the project. At that time, outlines for what would become Andor were being created by Jared Bush (who is now the chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios), as well as Jack Dudman, Luke Fisher, Will Htay, and Vincent Jenkins, who are all Star Wars concept art veterans and production designers.
Those outlines were for a series that, according to Andor lead graphic designer Dominic Sikking, was going to be "a spy drama, in the same vein as the original Mission: Impossible TV series:"
"It was described to me as a spy drama, in the same vein as the original 'Mission: Impossible' TV series. The series would follow Cassian Andor and a group of rebels infiltrating the Empire using Cold War-style spycraft."
The Andor art book also explained that those drafts of Star Wars: Alliance and Star Wars: Andor Five were sent by then Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy to Tony Gilroy, simply to update him on how the Rogue One spin-off was going and keep him in the loop. For reference, Gilroy wrote the screenplay for Rogue One, so Kennedy wanted to let him know the direction his characters were going and the storyline that was being created from Gilroy's work.
Gilroy responded to Kennedy by sending her a lengthy letter, which included a pitch for what his version of the story could be. Obviously, Kennedy and the rest of Lucasfilm loved Gilroy's ideas because they essentially scrapped what had been created up until that point, hired Gilroy as the writer and creator of Andor, and tasked him with executing the pitch he sent to Kennedy in that letter.
According to Gilroy, he "wasn't trying to get the job" when he sent Kennedy the letter and his pitch for what would become Andor. Instead, he was simply "trying to be friendly and helpful," as he and Kennedy had a working relationship that spanned many years.
For reference, Gilroy also wrote the screenplays for the acclaimed Bourne series, which was produced by the production company founded by Kennedy and her spouse, Frank Marshall. Kennedy and Gilroy also obviously worked together on Rogue One, so because of their relationship, Kennedy had no problem asking Gilroy to return to Star Wars for Andor, since his ideas for the series were so great.
Ultimately, Lucasfilm dropped the original ideas for Andor, as well as those Star Wars: Alliance and Star Wars: Andor Five titles. What came from that decision was one of the most successful and praised Star Wars projects of all time, even if it got one thing wrong.
Andor is a Better Show, But Alliances or Andor Five Would Have Been Better Titles
There is no arguing that Andor will always be in the history books as one of the greatest and most influential pieces of Star Wars media of all time. Nothing should have been changed about the series and its content. However, if Lucasfilm had kept one of the original titles, it would have been an improvement.
Andor is simple. It gets to the point, doesn't include any fluff, and tells the audience who the series is all about. However, it continues a common modern trend where titles just don't seem creative at all and are instead just the name of the main character. Star Wars: Alliance and Star Wars: Andor Five had more substance. Frankly, they also would have made the show feel more important.
The proposed titles are pretty self-explanatory. The Alliance title would have simply represented the show exploring the birth and early days of the Rebel Alliance, which was deeply explored throughout Rogue One, Rebels, and the original trilogy. Andor Five is a bit more mysterious, but it most likely refers to the fact that Andor takes place in the five-year period leading up to the events of Rogue One.
Notably, in the original plans for Andor, the show was going to last for five seasons, which also could have been represented in that title.
At the end of the day, the Andor title isn't that big a deal, especially since the series turned out so great. However, fans likely would have enjoyed the title a bit more if it had been more creative, and it is a bit frustrating that the name of the series originally was just that.
