At the beginning of Andor episode 7, we see an ISB meeting, yet it’s not like the others we’ve seen earlier in the season. This time, they’re being addressed by someone who certainly seems in charge, who personally spoke with Emperor Palpatine himself the previous night, and who is telling them about the Empire closing their first on the galaxy.
Though the man is not not named in the episode, the subtitles and credits confirm what Star Wars fans guessed upon seeing him: the superior addressing the group was none other than Colonel Wulff Yularen.
But who exactly is Yularen? He’s been a supporting character in quite a bit of Star Wars material now, appearing in A New Hope, The Clone Wars, Rebels, and some books before now showing up in Andor.
Yularen served in the Republic navy during the Clone Wars, and he was the Admiral who commanded Anakin Skywalker’s flagship, the Resolute. Yularen worked under the Jedi General to lead several successful military campaigns during the War and became one of the navy’s most respected strategists. Because of that, he sat on the prosecution in the trial of Ahsoka Tano, who was eventually exonerated. Despite his involvement there, Yularen continued to serve Skywalker right up to the conclusion of the Clone Wars.
As the Republic was re-branded into the Empire, Yularen remained loyal to Palpatine and his government. He initially continued as an admiral in the Imperial navy, but before long he resigned to join the newly-formed Imperial Security Bureau (ISB) as a colonel. In addition to assisting with several investigations, Yularen was responsible for training younger agents for service, including agent Alexsander Kallus. But Yularen also took a liking to a young alien lieutenant named Thrawn, and the two formed a friendship that soon saw Thrawn promoted to the rank of Grand Admiral in the Imperial navy.
With Thrawn in command of the Seventh Fleet and tasked with tracking down a rebel cell, he and Yularen went to work to find a spy within the Empire’s ranks – whom they quickly identified as Kallus. The traitor defected from the Empire and joined the Rebel Alliance, and before long Thrawn disappeared into the Unknown Regions. Yularen, meanwhile, was stationed aboard the Death Star once it was finished, as he was present for a meeting of Imperial leaders when Grand Moff Tarkin informed them the Emperor had dissolved the Senate. Not long after that the Rebellion would launch an attack on the battle station above Yavin, where Luke Skywalker fired a shot to destroy the station. Yularen was one of many Imperials killed in the explosion.
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