See Maul&x27;s &x27;Star Wars&x27; return in exclusive &x27;Shadow Lord&x27; scene Brian Truitt, USA TODAYTue, March 31, 2026 at 1:01 PM UTC 0 "Star Wars" is a mythology built on good fighting evil, about being selfless vs. selfish. So what's Darth Maul doing with his own Disney+ show? That he is "one of the most selfish characters" in the franchise is the beauty of the 10episode animated series "Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord," says Sam Witwer, who has voiced the fanfavorite former Sith lord and frequent villain for more than a decade in various TV and movie projects.
See Maul's 'Star Wars' return in exclusive 'Shadow Lord' scene
Brian Truitt, USA TODAYTue, March 31, 2026 at 1:01 PM UTC
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"Star Wars" is a mythology built on good fighting evil, about being selfless vs. selfish. So what's Darth Maul doing with his own Disney+ show?
That he is "one of the most selfish characters" in the franchise is the beauty of the 10-episode animated series "Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord," says Sam Witwer, who has voiced the fan-favorite former Sith lord and frequent villain for more than a decade in various TV and movie projects. With "Shadow Lord" (two episodes streaming weekly starting April 6), "we are not interested in making a show that's a bummer. We're not interested in making a show that's about a guy going around and hurting people."
"It's a 'Star Wars' show, so it really is about that morality, but we are now seeing it through the lens of someone whose morality has been compromised by the training of his mentor. But his emotional life is the same as you or me or anyone else."
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Maul (voiced by Sam Witwer) isn't a good guy but he's also no fan of the evil Galactic Empire either in the animated series "Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord."
Set a year after the Clone Wars – and about 18 years before the first "Star Wars" movie – "Shadow Lord" catches up with Maul with a few bones to pick. With a new crew, the lightsaber-wielding Zabrak warrior has come to Janix, a planet that has so far been untouched by the Empire's iron fist and aims to take vengeance on those in the underworld who betrayed him while also rebuilding his crime syndicate.
Maul's reappearance ultimately puts him on the Imperial radar, and he's still pretty ticked off at Emperor Palpatine (aka his old mentor, Darth Sidious).
Rather than his old foes of the Jedi, who have been mostly wiped out, Maul is "pointing at Darth Sidious and saying, 'That's the guy who really is the source of my suffering,' " Witwer says. "And in fact, he's the source of the galaxy's suffering, because everywhere you look, you see Sidious' hand. The darkness in Sidious' soul and his spirit is now permeating everything and the lives of everyone who lives in the Galactic Empire."
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A police detective on the planet, Brander Lawson (Wagner Moura), and other cops investigate Maul's activities while actively trying to keep the Empire from getting involved. "They don't understand that this criminal that they're tracking is supernatural and something otherworldly, and something very dangerous," Witwer says. A pair of surviving Jedi, Master Eeko-Dio Daki (Dennis Haysbert) and his padawan Devon Izara (Gideon Adlon), also get embroiled in Maul's drama, especially when deadly Jedi-hunting Imperial Inquisitiors show up.
Maul takes special interest in young Devon, seeing her as a potential apprentice and him being a master who's superior – morally and otherwise – to Sidious. "The scary thing, though, is that if you zoom out, people would look at Maul and go, 'You're exactly like Sidious.' And he would not see it that way," Witwer says.
"Maul is reassessing everything, and he is looking to make some big moves on the galactic stage."
Played by Ray Park, Maul first appeared in George Lucas' 1999 prequel "The Phantom Menace," used sparingly and sent to his apparent doom after being sliced in half and falling down a shaft during an epic lightsaber battle against Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker.
Witwer voiced Maul beginning with his surprise return (and questionable mental state) in "Star Wars: The Clone Wars," played the character's final moments in "Star Wars: Rebels," and in between also portrayed him in "Solo: A Star Wars Story" as well as various video games, audiobooks and audio dramas. "I now feel like we are coming to a point where his entire journey makes perfect sense to me in my head," Witwer says.
The actor teases that longtime "Star Wars" fans will learn more and "have a closer contact with that character than you've ever had." But even if you're not "and you're curious about why people are making a big deal about this Darth Maul guy, we got you. We have made this show for you."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Darth Maul makes 'Star Wars' comeback in new 'Shadow Lord' series
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Published: March 31, 2026 at 05:09PM on Source: MANUEL MAG
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