In an interview with Variety, writer Beau Willimon discussed the fan-favorite properties he’s currently a part of: he’s an executive producer on Apple TV+’s Severance and wrote episodes for both seasons of Andor.
In the chat with the trade he likened writing on Star Wars to “being a session musician on someone’s album.” His collaboration with Andor creator Tony Gilroy began on the Willimon-created Netflix series House of Cards, with Gilroy coming aboard as a consulting producer.
“When he was developing Andor, he asked if I wanted to write a few episodes and I thought he was joking because I grew up with and love Star Wars but I’m not an aficionado,” Willimon said. “He said, ‘the less you know, the better because I want to tell a human story and a grown-up story.’”
Willimon continued to describe the six-week period he, Gilroy, and Tony Gilroy’s brother Dan Gilroy spent breaking the story for Andor. “I didn’t have to bear any of the burden of what a showrunner usually has to deal with. All I had to do for the first time in my life was function as a writer who was delivering scripts to my friend Tony Gilroy. As long as he liked them, I was good.”
About the current season of Lucasfilm’s hit series, he added, “I’m very proud of the second season.”
The writer also had in hand in helping flesh out the world of Severance for the Apple TV+ show’s second season. It wasn’t something he usually does but he took the job as an executive producer to provide extra help.
“I came in to assist on the production side of it, with the writers,” shared Willimon. “It was an extraordinary experience because there is nothing like this show. I am really interested in doing projects where I don’t fully know how to do it. With Severance, it was this beautifully built world and tone and I challenged myself to help that team bring the second season to fruition. I was in service of the story like anyone else.”
He continued to describe how the experiences of Andor and Severance to “facilitate someone else’s vision” have given him a new love of producing. “Sometimes I have a bit of distance and perspective that can be helpful, or it can purely facilitate on a practical level. I don’t have to bear the burden of this being my baby, I can simply help someone raise this child.”
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