So we prefer to warn you right away: this article contains many spoilers about Star Wars – The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels and Solo – A Star Wars Story. If you don't want to know anything about it, and faster than that!
We've warned you! Many of us were particularly surprised by the end of Solo – A Star Wars Story. Indeed, after all a movie where we thought we had Dryden Vos as an antagonist, we finally discover the one who was pulling the strings in the shadows: Maul! Formerly Dark (or Darth) Maul.
If this did not surprise fans of The Clone Wars and Rebels, the general public was shocked to say the least by this revelation. Indeed, remember that this badass villain of Star Wars 1 – The Phantom Menace ends up cut in two before being thrown to the bottom of a well. Enough to believe him dead for good…But now, after its reintroduction in animated series to please fans of the character, it is finally back in the movies. And it would still be surprising if this one reappears only as a simple cameo. Lucasfilm surely has an idea in the back of its head about this character and it's time to ask what!
A spin-off?
This would be the most logical choice for Maul. This character relayed to the rank of simple villain in Episode 1, has seen his psychology develop in animated series, but also in books and comics (whether it is the official canon or the universe "Legends"). So there would be a lot of material to develop in an entire film dedicated to him. We think of course of his apprenticeship with Darth Sidious, but also how he survived after The Phantom Menace, or what he did between episodes 3 and 4, to end on a final confrontation with his nemesis: Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Note that if Maul survived his first confrontation against Obi-Wan, it is in Star Wars Rebels that he will breathe his last in the arms of the latter, after a very short duel worthy of a real samurai movie. There would therefore be enough to develop a beautiful story stretching over several decades concerning this character, even if showing his death at the hands of Obi-Wan in a film would risk duplicating Rebels.
A character connected to several works?
Another solution could apply to Maul: not to make a film about him, but rather to disseminate it here and there in the various spin-offs to come. We obviously think of the spin-off on Obi-Wan, which would be the perfect time to make him appear again, but also the spin-off on Boba Fett, recently confirmed with James Mangold (Logan) directing. If Maul was still alive during Han Solo's youth, then he was fatally alive during Boba Fett's youth, and nothing would prevent these characters from crossing paths one day or another. Not to mention the various Trilogies to come, one directed by Rian Johnson and the other by the showrunners of Game of Thrones. Can we hope for an appearance of the character in these next saga? Besides, is it possible that one of these Trilogies is dedicated to him? Or will they be completely removed from the stories we already know? To see…
The "common thread" of a Han Solo Trilogy?
It will not have escaped anyone: Solo – A Star Wars Story is a flop to the point of making Lucasfilm review its schedule for years to come. But before this film was a failure, rumors circulated that it could be the first installment of a Trilogy. So we can wonder if this hypothetical Trilogy would not have seen Maul as some kind of big bad constantly pulling the strings in the shadows, in order to accomplish his personal purposes. It could have been very interesting to follow the rest of Han's adventures, while following in parallel that of Maul and Qi'ra. Recall in passing that at the end of Solo, Maul asks Qi'ra to join him, telling him that they were going to collaborate in a more more way. Can we imagine that Qi'ra is sensitive to the force and that Maul wishes to make her his disciple? Bets are off…
If the future of Lucasfilm and its spin-offs is still very unclear, it is still very likely that Maul will reappear at one time or another. A spin-off on him would certainly be the most feasible solution, but many other possibilities are available to him. Obviously, we are still at the hypothetical stage since no statement has yet been made on this subject.It now remains to be seen what Lucasfilm and Disney will want to do with him in the coming years, case to follow!
