Does A Major Rogue One Character Show Up In Andor Episode 7?

Star Wars: Andor follows the backstory of Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) before his noble sacrifice for the Rebel Alliance during the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. In that sense, Star Wars fans have been watching the Andor series on Disney+ with careful attention, looking to see if any major characters from Rogue One crossed paths with Cassian Andor before the fateful mission that would cost him and his cohorts their lives. And after Andor Episode 7, Star Wars fans are excited that one major character from Rogue One may have finally arrived! 

WARNING: Andor Episode 7 SPOILERS Follow!

In “Announcement”, The Empire is left scrambling after the bold heist that Cassian and his squad pulled at the Imperial Garrison on Aldhani. The Imperials are forced to start considering the Rebel effort as a significant threat, while the organizers of the heist (Mon Mothma, Luthen Rael) have to accept the reality that they’ve sparked a rebellion that there is no turning back from. Caught in the middle are the actual people fighting the conflict, and for Andor that proves to be a position wedged between a rock and a hard place. The Empire wants Cassian for his crmes; and Luthen wants to eliminate what he sees as a loose end in Cassian. Andor knows enough to get gone, and takes his cut of the score to hide out in luxury on the planet Niamos. 

Unfortunately, paradise turns out to be the exact trap that Cassian was trying to avoid. While trying to walk to the store of his resort, Andor is stopped by an imperial trooper, who mistakes him for a local who is trying to flee being detained. Cassian can’t talk his way out of the situation fast enough before a KX-series Imperial security droid is brought up to choke him out and detain him. 

Naturally, Star Wars fans saw this Imperial security droid’s interaction with Cassian Andor and assumed that it is K-2SO, the Imperial Security droid that eventually becomes Cassian’s main partner. It’s a fine assumption, but ultimately a specious one: the same scene shows multiple Imperial droids patrolling the area, suggesting that this is just an early bad encounter that Cassian has with one – possibly sparking his later motivation to turn the power of an Imperial droid to his advantage. 

K-2SO Will NOT Appear in Andor Season 1

This matter was actually settled early on, when Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy and star Diego Luna both confirmed that K-2SO is not in Andor Season 1 at all, and explained why: 

“From a storytelling point of view, there are multiple reasons,” Tony Gilroy said at the TCAs. “I would say, ‘Wait and see.’ It’s a story we are eager to tell. It’s difficult to carry an Imperial droid around with you and not draw all kinds of attention. It’s a difficult piece of luggage. When we do it, we’ll do it in a spectacular fashion as opposed to presenting it and ignoring it, or presenting it or hiding it, or the bad versions we would have been forced to do… We’re starting him so far away from the person who would know how to — or be motivated to — reprogram an Imperial droid.”

Luna added the logistical insight that Cassian Andor’s timeline doesn’t allow for him to meet K-2SO this early: “We have five years [before the events in Rogue One] … If he knew K2 back then there would be no journey to go through.”

So NO, that was NOT K-2SO in Andor Episode 7. Just a reminder of how badly we want him to arrive in Season 2. 

Andor Season 1 is streaming new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.