The Death Star Human Resources Department Newsletter: May 23, 2025
The crushing ennui of Andor being over
Hello there
Good morning and welcome back once again to the latest edition of the Death Star Human Resources Department Newsletter. It’s a fairly quick one this week as I’m dealing with a post-Andor hangover. Right now we’re all Mon Mothma the morning after the wedding/dance party. There’s a quick update on some ideas for Andor on the big screen and I stumbled across an article about the never-was Knights of the Old Republic III.
This Is Where The Fun Begins
We’re heading into Memorial Day weekend, pretty good chance you may end up at a barbecue or a cookout this weekend. If you do, be safe. Don’t be like Anakin.
I have to run to the grocery store later today. I've think a sixer of Yuengling is going to be on the list. I’ll toast to Anakin and all the Yuenglings that didn’t make it.
From the Desk of the Editor
As always, the word “editor” is used loosely here. Typos are left in so you know that Death Star HR is 100% human written. No AI here.
It’s bit of a weird spot for Star Wars in 2025 in that as far as movies and TV shows go, we’re basically done for the year. It was going to be a slow year anyway, there’s no movie and Andor was the main attraction. Yes, there’s Tales of the Underworld and the upcoming Visions: Volume 3. But those are shows for the Sickos. Some news will trickle out about The Mandalorian and Grogu and season 2 of Ahsoka, maybe some occasional updates about Starfighter or the eventual Rey movie.
So I basically have at least six months of Death Star HR and not much in the way of big Star Wars news to fill it. I have a few long form pieces I’ve been working on, I hope to have one finished for the first newsletter in June. But otherwise it’s all up in there air. I mentioned this at the beginning of the year and have of course made no progress on it, but I really want to add a semi-regular podcast here. Hopefully I’ll start that up soon. It’s just a little stranger after getting a pretty steady diet of Star Wars shows for the last 4.5 years, there’s nothing new coming for a year.
Kleya Marki is Ready For Her Closeup
Not sure how I missed this, but at Celebration last month, Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy floated the idea of Andor on the big screen, maybe having the finale lead into Rogue One. As he told Collider:
"It's been discussed. We've mixed [Episodes] 1, 2, and 3 to play theatrically. They do need a little bit of an extra mix. We mix differently for how we deliver normally, because people watch on their iPads, on their TVs — it’s 5.1 [aspect ratio]. If you’re mixing for theaters, it's not like a switch. It takes a couple hours or a day to do that. So we have [Episodes] 1, 2, and 3. If there was enough interest, I'm sure Disney would roadshow it at some point. Why not? I think they have interest in showing [Episode] 12 going into Rouge [One], but that depends on how the show does. They look good on a big screen."
While it’s nothing concrete, the Mouse loves money and I have no doubt the Disney beancounters took note that Revenge of the Sith brought in $34 million at the box office just in the USA over 6 days, and add in another $21 million worldwide. I’m not sure what Disney’s advertising costs were, but they were a lot less than $55 million. Those dollar signs should get Disney’s attention.
Then today I saw this. Please take it with a Hutt-sized grain of salt because I have not been able to find any collaborating information, but the Instagram accounts appears to be legit. Or at least legit in the sense it’s not a meme account or a troll account or anything like that. So again, take this for what it’s worth.
It makes sense. Andor has been a hit with fans and critics (not something that’s easy to do these days) and while the streaming numbers for season 1 weren't as great as Disney probably hoped, the second season has also been a hit for the streaming metrics.
The question is how do you show Andor at the theaters. Back in my first year of Death Star HR, I wrote about the time I saw the OT back to back to back.
Put simply, halfway through Return of the Jedi, I was sick of sitting that long and just wanted Lando and Chewie to, in the words of Han, “blow this thing and let’s go home.” And that was just three movies and there was a break in between each one. Andor is 24 episodes and probably 20ish hours total. Add the run time of Rogue One and breaks and you’re looking at over 24 hours.
Next year is the 10th anniversary of Rogue One, the best of the Disney Star Wars movies1. It would certainly make sense for Disney to get it back into theaters, even if it’s just six days like Revenge of the Sith. Maybe release it as a December movie since The Mandalorian and Grogu has the May release slot.
I’ve mentioned this a few times before, but getting the Disney TV shows into the theaters almost seems like a no-brainer. You can binge a season of The Mandalorian in an afternoon. Trust me, I’ve done it. I have a good time watching Mando when it’s just me and Darth Taco sitting on the couch. So why not make that an experience? Why not put The Mandalorian in theaters for May the 4th next year as a lead-in to The Mandalorian and Grogu which will be hitting the big screen a few weeks later?
Getting back to Rogue One, showing the finale of Andor and leading it into Rogue One would certainly work. It’s probably better if you think of Andor and Rogue One as one whole unit versus a TV show and a movie, they just flow better. Or if you wanted to let people make an afternoon out of it, maybe the last three episodes of Andor, starting with Kleya and Luthen in the hospital and then leading into Rogue One. I’m not sure what the correct number of Andor episodes (other than all of them) that need to be shown on the big screen, but I am sure this needs to happen.
Is Another Round of Revan Too Much to Ask?
We know the answer, yes. Yes it was. “Knights of the Old Republic” and “Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords” were just top tier Star Wars games. While from what I understand it’s pretty common now, KOTOR was one of the first games (as far as I know) to have both “good” and “bad” dialog responses or actions and the choices you make along the way during the game effect the outcome of the game. KOTOR II famously was released before it was complete due to LucasArts rushing the game so it could be in the stores for Christmas shopping. I haven’t done a survey, but I think most Star Wars fans who played them have positive thoughts about the KOTOR games. The story, the dialog, the characters; all of it top notch.
We were supposed to get KOTOR III, but it never happened. Instead LucasArts did a pivot to The Old Republic, a MMORPG which was all the rage at the time. The further adventures of Revan and company weren’t to be. There was a plan, or at least a concept of a plan thought. Per VG247:
“The third game involved you, as a player character, following where Revan went and then taking the battle to the really ancient Sith lords who are far more terrifying than the Darths that show up. These guys would just be monsters. These would have a level of power that was considerable, but at the same time you’d be able to dig more into their psychologies, and their personalities, their history, and even how they dealt with the player, how they talk with the player, the different powers they cultivated and developed, and for some of them like - they’re the ancients, so they’re not just ruling a solar system, [but] swathes of the galaxy.
Yes please!
I have wondered for a while why Disney Star Wars doesn’t do more with KOTOR. Sassy Murder Droid HK-47 has been canonized in comic book form. Technically speaking Revan is canon since he’s listed in “The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary.” I haven’t actually read said book, so I have no idea what the context for mentioning a character from a 16 year old (at the time) video game who doesn’t appear in the movie ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
There are plenty of people, I am often one of them, who thinks Disney spends too much time recycling stories or characters when fans desperately want a breath of fresh and new stories. Andor is proof that a fresh story will sell. But if Disney wanted a nostalgia win, a Knights of the Old Republic TV show, movie, or animated series is right there.
This Day in Star Wars History
What happened on May 23rd in the galaxy far, far away? I’m glad you asked.
Robert Watts was born in 1938. Watts was a production manager on A New Hope, an associate producer on Empire Strikes Back, and a co-producer on Return of the Jedi. I wonder if on set, people get little blue and red squares to pin on their shirts like the Imperials have. If Uncle George was on set, he gets the full Grand Moff pin with 12 squares. If you’re just fetching coffee, it’s only 2 squares for you. Watts also played Lt. Blanaid in ROTJ, better known as the AT-ST driver who gets yanked out of the walker by Chewie.
Author Sean Williams was born in 1967. Williams wrote six Star Wars Legends novels, three I have recently read in the New Jedi Order series. The NJO books were co-written with fellow Aussie Shane Dix. Williams is also a senior lecturer at Flinders University in Adelaide. Note, it is not Flanders University. Okally-Dokally?
The Star Friends PSA was released. The anti drunk-driving commercial was a joint venture between the US Department of Transportation, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and Lucasfilm subsidiary Black Falcon.
The first Star Wars Celebration opened on this day in 1987. Or as it was then known, Starlog Salutes Star Wars aka Star Wars 10th Anniversary Celebration. The event took place at Stouffer Concourse Hotel in Los Angeles from May 23 - 25th. We also got the only known photo of George Lucas and Gene Roddenberry.
Trekkies and Star Wars fans can get along! Source. Photo originally taken by Dan Madsen
From the Depths of Wookieepedia
Are computer labs on college campuses still a thing? Or are any youths reading this just completely confused by what I’m talking about. If the latter is the case and you are a young person who doesn’t know what a computer lab was, it was a room that was filled with desktop computers that you would use to do your work on. Which brings me to this week’s entry, the Justicars' computer lab from The Old Republic video game.
No explanation as to what the Justicars did in said lab. But if one of them had a History of the Sith 101 paper due the next day, he or she could to type it up and pray to the Mortis Gods that the printer was working.
News From the HoloNet
Star Wars Outlaws is better than you think it is
Once again accepting PS5 donations here at Death Star HR HQ.
‘Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith’ Stands on the Shoulders of Animation
It is amazing how well The Clone Wars worked. Maybe I’ll do a rewatch soon.
Star Wars: Natalie Portman Talks Potential Padme Return
As I said a few weeks ago, ROTS did Padme dirty. Justice for Padme!
Rian Johnson’s Star Wars Trilogy Gets Hopeful Update (But Will it Happen?)
Like the Taika Waititi movie and the KOTOR series, I’ll believe it when I see it.
That’s it for this week. If you like what I’m doing, please subscribe. I’ll catch you next week, and may the Force be with you.
I will accept The Last Jedi as the best Disney Star Wars movie.
You hit the nail on the head. You couldn’t condense the story of Andor from 20 hours to three hours, especially if you want to pair it with Rogue One.
Entire arcs may have to be cut out, but I’m sure very smart people could make it digestible.
I think I see where the screening plans are coming from. Fathom Events has been hosting TV feeds in theaters during the week for a while, and the Angelika chain has been running live feeds for over a decade (the showings of “The Walking Dead” at Angelika Dallas would still be running if not for COVID). I could see, for instance, Wednesday showings of “Andor” between now and the tenth anniversary, with the option to pay for the whole show run, each season, or individual screenings. I absolutely agree that more than three hours would be interminable, especially on a work/school night, but TWO episodes at a time could very easily work. The big issue would be with the theaters, and considering the number of “Rent This Theater!” ads everywhere from the usual AMC screens to the Texas Theatre, I don’t think they’d mind not running films for empty theaters on a Wednesday or Thursday night.