In the second season of 'Star Wars: Andor,' the character of Bail Organa has been recast, now played by Benjamin Bratt instead of Jimmy Smits. Creator Tony Gilroy explained that despite efforts, they were unable to schedule Smits, who was busy filming his CBS show, ‘East New York.’ Gilroy noted that bringing back legacy characters often involves complex challenges like scheduling and financial constraints. Ultimately, LucasFilm's Kathleen Kennedy suggested casting Bratt, which Gilroy praised as a brilliant decision, emphasizing Bratt's positive presence on set.
Gilroy told Entertainment Weekly that they failed to get Smits, 69, to return as Bail. "We couldn't work it out," said Gilroy, 68. "The scheduling didn't work out. We really tried hard, but he wasn't available and couldn't make it."
Gilroy added to ScreenRant, "It's really hard to bring legacy characters back for a whole variety of reasons. Money and scheduling and I mean, he [Smits] just wasn't available. It didn't work out. He was doing his other show and we were under the gun and they couldn't work it out."
Gilroy told EW that LucasFilm president Kathleen Kennedy came up with the idea to cast Bratt, 61, as the senator. "It was just a brilliant idea. He's a wonderful human being and really eager and beloved on set and really happy about what he does."
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