ANDOR Showrunner Was Told "Streaming Is Dead" By Disney; Confirms Series Cost $650 Million Over Two Seasons

ANDOR Showrunner Was Told "Streaming Is Dead" By Disney; Confirms Series Cost $650 Million Over Two Seasons

Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy confirms that the Star Wars series cost $650 million to produce. and reflects on battling Disney for the money he expected after being told by execs that "streaming is dead."

By JoshWilding - Jun 02, 2025 12:06 PM EST
Filed Under: Cassian Andor
Source: SFFGazette.com

There have repeatedly been reports about Andor season 1 and 2 costing Disney upwards of $645 million to produce. However, that's such an insane figure for a streaming series, no one could quite believe it was real. 

While the Star Wars TV series has been a critical hit, it's never really broken any viewership records that we're aware of. Cassian Andor is a popular character, but Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was released nearly a decade ago, and with no Jedi and few familiar faces, Andor isn't a series with much widespread appeal. 

Talking at the ATX Television Festival (via SFFGazette.com), Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy reflected on how Cassian's war with the Empire has resonated with people. 

"It’s really sad how many people can find a place to put this [word] in some place that’s meaningful for them," he said. "And, you know, I’ve been allowed to start using the word 'fascism' the last couple weeks. That’s liberating."

"But I don’t think it should be any surprise or even be too slippery or complicated for people to understand the road I have to walk to do all this; to maximize the audience and protect the investment of a really brave [company]," Gilroy continued. "I mean, [for] Disney this is $650 million. For 24 episodes, I never took a note."

He added, "We said 'F*** the Empire’ in the first season, and they said, 'Can you please not do that?' In Season 2, they said, 'Streaming is dead, we don’t have the money we had before,' so we fought hard about money, but they never cleaned anything up. That [freedom] comes with responsibilities."

"But it is sad how many people can find a place to put 'genocide' into their vocabulary. I don’t think you need me to say anything else, do you?"

There are a few key takeaways here. Not only was Andor a bigger-than-expected 24-episode investment for Disney and Lucasfilm, but if the House of Mouse truly believes "streaming is dead," that's a troubling sign about where things stand with these platforms. 

In recent years, the market has been saturated with streamers, forcing consumers to be selective with which they choose to subscribe to. However, many of these companies have realised that spending huge amounts of money on content doesn't pay off, which is why most have reverted to a traditional TV model with commercials (and, if you don't want to see them, the monthly cost is more).

Bob Chapek threw a huge amount of money into Disney+, flooding it with content; that approach led to Disney losing a lot of money. Bob Iger's return changed things, and it's apparent now that we're not going to get the same level of big budget fare moving forward. That's partly why the Moana TV series became Moana 2, and Lilo & Stitch was released in theaters. 

Was Andor a bad investment? Well, that depends on how much of a streaming draw it's been, and only Disney has access to that data. However, it's not a show that's generated much in the way of merchandise, meaning recouping that $650 million investment will be easier said than done.

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xfactor
xfactor - 6/2/2025, 12:27 PM
Is it though?
TheAstoundingMan
TheAstoundingMan - 6/2/2025, 1:08 PM
@MakeAmericaGrea - So much effort for such a brain-dead post.

Typical MAGA sycophant. Keep licking that boot, bitch boy.
Juicebox316
Juicebox316 - 6/2/2025, 1:14 PM
@TheAstoundingMan - Its great becuase he clearly doesn't have a life outside of this website beyond the bottom step of his Mom's basement. He's a punchline at this point. Purely comic relief. The best part is, he thinks the things he's posting are somehow influencing. Free entertainment though!
bobevanz
bobevanz - 6/2/2025, 1:27 PM
@MakeAmericaGrea - "I don't like these people so it can't be true" brain rot at it's finest
AllsNotGood
AllsNotGood - 6/2/2025, 12:27 PM
Lunacy
Clintthahamster
Clintthahamster - 6/2/2025, 12:28 PM
I imagine it was more along the lines of "We're not going to spend this much money on a streaming show ever again" and Gilroy's just paraphrasing off the cuff, but sure, let's all bicker about this for a while!
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 6/2/2025, 12:29 PM
@ClintthaManster - I could see that…

That shit is pretty insane even by big budget tv standards lol
Shivermetimbers
Shivermetimbers - 6/2/2025, 12:33 PM
Dang, that show was so expensive. It showed through the production quality though. It LOOKED expensive, in a good way, which you can't say about a lot of the overpriced productions that hit the theaters these days. I loved Andor and I didn't expect to, so glad it was made. I wish Star Wars would adopt that style and tone for more of their stories. It was one of the best Star Wars related projects ever in my opinion.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 6/2/2025, 1:47 PM
@Shivermetimbers - I just can't see it ever being replicated or matched. It now stands tall with Empire Strikes Back and the original 77 film. That's insane!
Typhoon20
Typhoon20 - 6/2/2025, 3:29 PM
@McMurdo - Uhh calm down there bud. It was good but standing with the original ones ? Nah.
mountainman
mountainman - 6/2/2025, 3:39 PM
@Typhoon20 - It most certainly stood with the OT. Andor is one of the greatest live action Star Wars productions of all time.
Lucasberg
Lucasberg - 6/3/2025, 1:09 AM
@Typhoon20 - honestly the series is pretty close. Gilroy delivered
MyCoolYoung
MyCoolYoung - 6/2/2025, 12:34 PM
Streaming services are offering packages, raising prices constantly, and cracking down on password sharing. Streaming may never die, but it is truly hurting the industry, and I think we will be returning to a cable-like model relatively soon.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 6/2/2025, 12:36 PM
@MyCoolYoung - life truly is a circle haha…

Things always come back around
Itwasme
Itwasme - 6/2/2025, 12:41 PM
@MyCoolYoung - its similar to what happened in music.
MyCoolYoung
MyCoolYoung - 6/2/2025, 12:50 PM
@Itwasme - I think I know what you mean, but can you explain?
Irregular
Irregular - 6/2/2025, 12:51 PM
@MyCoolYoung - Soon? It already IS a cable-like model. Make no mistake, it just has a different mask but it is the same as what cable packages offered in terms of pricing.
Irregular
Irregular - 6/2/2025, 12:52 PM
@Itwasme - I think it's a little different but I see what you mean.
MyCoolYoung
MyCoolYoung - 6/2/2025, 12:55 PM
@Irregular - True, but I guess I mean even further. I think a lot of them will combine until it's like two or three left, but maybe that's an overexaggeration.
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