‘Andor’ star Diego Luna talks doubling as a fashion designer

Who you calling scruffy-looking?

The Han Solo bon mot is reminiscent of Diego Luna’s confusion when he is asked about smoothing some of Cassian Andor’s rougher edges to go undercover as fashion designer Varian Skye in the second block of Andor season 2 episodes.

“Scruffy?” Luna asks, taken aback. “He’s a very clean guy.”

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But he does agree that the sleeker, well-tailored version of Cassian that is Varian Skye is a crucial character moment. Particularly when we’re only checking in on the guy for a few days once a year throughout the second season.

“I enjoyed showing how much he’s learned from Luthen (Stellan Skarsgård) and how exciting it can be to play characters,” Luna tells Entertainment Weekly. “Suddenly, we see an ability we didn’t know he had. And you can tell that this year he’s been very close to Luthen, learning so much, and understanding Luthen in a way.”

Playing Varian helps Cassian comprehend the world of fake identities and secrets that Luthen is constantly existing within — and the appeal of that, as well as the danger. “It has to be addictive to be able to convince others that you’re someone else,” Luna adds. “It’s a strength that Cassian finds and you see him at the peak of that process.”

It is also innately a strength of Luna’s, given that he regularly convinces audiences he’s someone else with the characters he plays. He describes building Varian Skye as an extremely collaborative process with the show’s costume designer.

“I love the journey of putting together that character with Michael Wilkinson, who’s a fantastic costume designer,” Luna says. “He’s so meticulous about everything. We had a very patient process with him. There were many, many sessions of work.”

It sounds even more complicated off screen than on.

Andor season 2 drops new episodes Tuesdays on Disney+.