Credit: Inside The MagicDisney may regret their actions as Tony Gilroy, the showrunner and writer for Diego Luna’s Andor, had to step away due to the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA).
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The WGA strike will affect several projects happening right now. There is no set date as to when the strike will end, meaning that some projects might end up with significant delays. Other series like Rings of Power are powering through without writers or showrunners. This could be disastrous as rewrites or story changes won’t have any help from the main writers, which could be a huge problem.
Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy followed the rules when it came to not writing anything more for the script when the strike hit, but he was still helping with music and casting, which showrunners could do. He shared with The Hollywood Reporter that he told the WGA he would stop all writing duties for the series once the strike started. Still, the Writer’s Guild changed their stance on what showrunners can do, so Gilroy has been forced to step away from the project.
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THR reveals that studios like Disney demand that writers follow their contracts and fulfill their non-writing duties, which is what Gilroy did. The WGA called this “union-busting tactics” as it was a way to keep writers on the projects without officially writing and angered many writers. Abdullah Saeed, who worked on the Onyx Collective comedy Deli Boys for Hulu, shared on Instagram his anger for Gilroy for not respecting other writers in the guild while working on Andor Season 2:
“This is scabbing. There’s no way a writer/producer can ‘finish’ writing and begin solely producing. And if the scripts truly are finished, let’s see ’em. If there’s one word different in the finished product, kick Tony Gilroy out of the WGA. One of the biggest writers in Hollywood could stand with his union and halt production on his hit show, thereby by forcing a major studio to consider WGA demands a little harder. Instead, he has chosen to be a SCAB! We all want Andor s2, but not at the cost of fairness to writers. #wgastrong”
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Gilroy didn’t mean to anger other writers by working on his series as the showrunner for Andor and followed every guideline the WGA listed for him to do. As of now, Gilroy has listened to the WGA and ceased all production on the project, leaving the series to continue production without him. This means that any rewrites or creative decisions are made without him, and that’s not great. Without Gilroy, there’s a level of concern for Andor because if Disney wants to add something to the series for their own personal agenda, no one will stop the company from interfering.
This leaves projects like Andor to possibly not live up to the hype because Gilroy has to take a stance and fight for better wages as a writer. It’s unfair to fans or Gilroy because Disney wants to profit in the end, which means that Disney+ series like Andor must continue with production.
Editors note May 12, 2023: An earlier version said Tony Gilroy wasn’t following what WGA wanted by following what Disney wanted him to do. Actually, Gilroy revealed in a later statement that he talked with WGA about a new change with showrunners so he ceased production when they made the following change and didn’t get in any trouble with the Guild.
Do you think Andor Season 2 will be good? Let Inside the Magic know what you think!