Diego Luna talks filming 'Andor' final season and the prospects for Latino actors in the Emmys race

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Diego Luna has mixed emotions about the looming end of his Star Wars series “Andor.”

“I am very excited filming, all the time I feel that we are approaching the end and, therefore, the process is lived with a certain melancholy,” the Mexican actor said in a recent interview by video call during a break in shoots in Great Britain for the acclaimed series’ second season.

Luna knew the series, about a Rebel spy introduced to fans in 2016’s “Rogue One,” was meant to last only two seasons. But he’s not looking forward to the end.

“There is also an inevitable part of saying how sad it is to leave this team, to leave this dynamic, to leave this time living here,” he said.

The show has taken a thriller approach to telling the backstory of Cassian Andor, a thief-turned-spy for the rebels resisting the brutal Galactic Empire of the original “Star Wars” trilogy.

Luna’s portrayal of Andor’s survive-at-all-costs ethos has made placed him on many shortlists for a drama series actor Emmy nomination. If it happens, he would be the first Latino actor to get an Emmy nom in the category in nearly 30 years; Puerto Rican star Jimmy Smits was the last actor to compete in the category in 1995 for his role in “NYPD Blue.”

There are other possible contenders: Pedro Pascal for “The Last of Us,” Jenna Ortega for “Wednesday” and Selena Gomez for the comedy series “Only Murders in the Building.” While Luna is happy he’s in the mix, the long drought for Latin actors is troubling.

“What makes me sad is the fact, the fact that the last nomination for a Latino actor in this category was so many years ago, it is very absurd knowing the number of interesting stories that have been told, the number of actors who have done memorable jobs,” he said. “But it’s also exciting to know that I’m not the only one and that makes me think that good things are coming for people who look like me, who come from where I come from.”

For now, Luna focuses on “what has already happened”, including the positive reception that “Andor” has received.

Created and produced by Tony Gilroy, “Andor” has received nominations for honors at the BAFTAs, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards and numerous others. It’s a rare achievement for a sci-fi series, which generally do not find themselves in the main categories at shows like the Emmys.

“There are many prejudices in some way with science fiction cinema and with ‘Andor’ very beautiful things have happened,” Luna said. “It’s very nice to see that for the team, the people who do this, the people in the industry are celebrating them and the series.”

When asked if there will be more action or if the second season, which will arrive in August 2024, will be darker, Luna stressed that the series lives in the middle of both forces.

“It’s the balance that makes this series stick,” he said. “I think that if something characterizes this series, it is the depth it has in the portrait of its characters. Being the last season, you got to follow the path of all these characters that you met in the first, and well, many of them are not in ‘Rogue One’ and the stories have to be (brought) to an end.”