Tony Gilroy Teases The Fate Of Andy Serkis' Kino Loy After Andor Season 1
Warning: this post contains major spoilers for "Andor" season 1. Proceed with caution.
We have reached the end of "Andor" season 1, leaving us with many questions dangling until the show returns. The good news is, production on season 2 is underway, with showrunner Tony Gilroy and the rest of the team wasting no time in returning to the "Star Wars" fold to finish telling the story of Cassian Andor. More broadly, they are going to finish showing us how the Rebellion was built from the ground up by a bunch of nameless, faceless heroes that the galaxy will never know. One such hero was (is?) Kino Loy, played by Andy Serkis, who we met during the prison arc of the show's first season. But one big question we were left on that front: is Kino Loy dead or alive?
I had the very good fortune of speaking with Gilroy in honor of the "Andor" finale. Given that I very much took to Serkis' Kino as a die-hard "Star Wars" fan, I was deeply curious to know if he survived the harrowing prison break in "One Way Out," the show's tenth episode. Gilroy was kind enough to address my question. I simply asked him, is Kino Loy alive? To which, the showrunner replied, "We didn't see him die."
Hope, at least a bit of it. And, as we all know, rebellions are built on hope. Now, from this point on, it's my read of the situation but I'm encouraged by the fact that Gilroy didn't just come right out and say that he's dead. There is even a bit in episode 11 of the series, in which, it's wondered aloud how many people made it following the Narkina 5 facility breakout. There's no telling right now what happened to Kino, but let's speculate, shall we?
Will we see Kino Loy again?
For those who may need a bit of a refresher, Kino Loy (one of the best "Star Wars" characters in years) led the prison break alongside Cassian once they realized the Empire wasn't going to let anyone out alive. But it was Kino's words that truly inspired the prisoners. Yet, when they finally made it to the top of the facility and saw their exit, Kino's face sank. They would need to jump hundreds of feet into the water below. Then, we hear one of the most simple yet heartbreaking lines in "Star Wars" history: "I can't swim."
Yes, after all of that, we discover that Kino can't swim, and he's left to watch everyone else leap to potential safety. But who's to say he didn't go back into the facility to find a floatation device of some kind? Who's to say he didn't get knocked off that ledge anyway and learn to swim in a big hurry? Maybe some of the other prisoners helped him? It's not inconceivable that he made it out alive. One thing we know for sure is, season 2 will cover a lot of ground, leading us right to the events of "Rogue One." Per Gilroy:
"We're going to be covering four years. Every time we do three episodes in the second half, we jump ahead a year. When we come back to the show for part two, it'll be a year later. We'll do three episodes, and then we'll jump a year. Then we'll do three episodes, and then we'll jump a year on that. That last year will be the year that takes us into "Rogue [One]." We have some pretty interesting storytelling opportunities."
This is to say, there will be plenty of opportunities for Cassian to reunite with Kino down the line. Here's hoping.
"Andor" season 1 is now streaming on Disney+.