During the recent Star Wars Celebration Japan, the upcoming animated series Maul: Shadow Lord was unveiled. This series focuses on the former Sith apprentice as he builds his enterprise into the Crimson Dawn crime syndicate, as featured in Solo and Star Wars Outlaws.
IGN conducted an interview with Sam Witwer, who reprises his role as the voice of Maul. Witwer shared that the show is set one year after the events of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. In the conclusion of that series, Maul had left Ahsoka and the Order 66-controlled Clones to their fates. Witwer described Maul as being in a "challenging place," having experienced the deaths of his mother Talzin and brother Savage, and facing abandonment or betrayal by allies from the Clone Wars era. A pivotal moment for Maul is Ahsoka’s rejection of his proposal to eliminate Anakin and thwart Palpatine’s rise, leading him to question his direction in life.
Witwer elaborated on Maul’s perspective, noting, "Maul comes from a time of magic… now he’s seeing an Empire he knew was coming, and the magic and color is being sucked out of the universe." This situation makes Maul reflect on his expectations and his current predicament, as he seeks to discover what his destiny holds. The trailer showcased at SWCJ hinted at a new apprentice for Maul, described by Witwer as "quite something."
Regarding the tone of Shadow Lord, Witwer made it clear that the series does not aim for redemption for Maul. "He’s a bad guy in this show," he stated. "Our show is bad guys versus worse guys, so Maul is every bit as bad as he was before—in some ways even worse."
Maul: Shadow Lord is set to premiere in 2026.