Disney+ launches Star Wars animated series about villain Darth Maul

Star Wars villain Darth Maul, who first appeared in 1999's Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, is getting his own series on Disney+. The fan-favorite character will star in a new animated series, Maul: Shadow Lord. The news was announced Friday at Star Wars Celebration. The series was revealed in the closing minutes of a panel discussion celebrating Lucasfilm Animation’s 20th anniversary, with Lucasfilm CCO Dave Filoni, who rose through the ranks through the animation department, and VP of animation Athena Portillo discussing the company’s prolific output. But while they chatted about working with George Lucas, the animation process, or past hits, when it came to discussing a future project, it was mostly “show, don’t tell.” They simply showed a trailer to an unsuspecting audience.

And when it became clear that this was going to be a series about Maul, fans went into raptures.



The series, which tells the story of Darth Maul teaching a student, will debut in 2026. Sam Witwer, who voiced Darth Maul in previous animated series, will reprise the role.

As a character, Darth Maul has shown unexpected, enduring power. He has made for a fearsome and memorable presence thanks to his unique appearance and double-edged lightsaber, the latter of which stunned fans who first saw it on screen in Phantom Menace . With acrobatic agility played by Ray Park, the Sith Lord even managed to prove truly deadly, killing Jedi Qui-Gon, played by Liam Neeson. But he also died when he was sliced ​​in half by a young Obi-Wan Kenobi.

But Lucasfilm couldn’t keep a good villain down, and the character was resurrected, albeit cybernetically, in the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The latter, plus the animated series Star Wars Rebels, deepened and built up Darth Maul with a rich history (including an entire criminal underworld) and compelling storylines.