Darth Maul’s Star Wars story seemed to end before it even really begin. Only, Obi-Wan Kenobi cutting him down in The Phantom Menace was the best thing that could have happened to the Sith apprentice. Or at least it was the best thing that could have happened to fans. He has become one of the most compelling figures in the galaxy far, far away. Darth Maul’s story has continued in books, comics, and, most importantly, animated series. Now he’s ready to star in his own Disney+ show, Maul: Shadow Lord.
He won’t be the only Force user to appear, though. Inquisitors are on the hunt for him while he’s on the hunt for a new apprentice of his own, a former Jedi Padawan who survived Order 66. What can we expect from this important era of Darth Maul’s life? What about from the Jedi he hopes to mentor, Devon? To find out all of that and much more, Nerdist spoke to the stars of the show, longtime voice of Darth Maul, Sam Witwer, and Star Wars newcomer Gideon Adlon, the franchise’s newest young Jedi.
Nerdist: Gideon, you are now and forever a Jedi. Have you thought about what that will mean for you for the rest of your life?
Gideon Adlon: Not yet, but now I will. I think what it might mean is that I get to be part of this pretty incredible world that has been being built since what? The early ’70s? And that gets bigger and bigger every day and changes people’s lives all the time? That’s pretty great. That’s very special as an artist to be welcomed in.
Sam, you’ve been a big part of the galaxy far, far away for a long time. What advice, if any, have you given Gideon about being a part of a legendary global franchise with a fan base this big and this passionate?
Sam Witwer: Oh, what’s interesting about Gideon is that she does not need the guidance. She knows what she’s doing. She’s a stone-cold professional, and she follows her instincts very well. So if I were to give her advice-
Adlon: I always ask Sam for guidance. I do.
Witwer: She gets it, man, she gets it. She totally gets it. Gideon’s right at home in the Star Wars universe, and we are so very lucky to have her. I will say right now, I can’t imagine anyone else playing this role. She owned it the moment she walked in, and it is such a surprising, cool, unleashed performance in terms of how much she brings to it. It’s fantastic. Great, great character.
I’ve seen the first eight episodes, and I know who Devon reminds me of, but I’m curious Gideon, what other Star Wars figures, both Jedi and non-Jedi alike, do you think she shares important DNA with?
Adlon: Can I be honest? I’ve never compared Devon to anyone. I really haven’t, I don’t think.
Witwer: Fantastic answer.
Adlon: Yeah, I haven’t compared her to anyone, but I’m curious who you think she is similar to.
I think there are definitely connections with Ahsoka. Absolutely meaningful differences, but I do think they share some of the same DNA.
Adlon: Yeah, I wouldn’t be surprised, but I don’t know. Literally, I don’t. And I’ve never thought about that, but that’s interesting.
Sam, you’ve now played Darth Maul for a very long time across many shows spanning many periods of his life. What new things did you learn about the character as you worked on Shadow Lord that maybe you didn’t already know about him?
Witwer: At this point in his life, he’s reassessing absolutely everything, and, in some ways, very confused. Imagine having the rug pulled out from under you as the world around you changes, because it used to be the Galactic Republic in the Clone Wars, and now it’s the Galactic Empire. And Maul thought he knew what that meant, because at one point he was one of the architects of the Galactic Empire. This is not that. This is not what Maul expected. This isn’t the world he thought the Empire would bring.
This is also a world in which, everywhere he looks, he sees the hand of his old master, Darth Sidious. And also his first tormentor, Darth Sidious, his father figure, the guy that really mistreated him and made him into what he is. So yeah, it’s a giant rug pull.
The Shadow Collective kind of dispersed when the Clone Wars ended. All the people he thought would be there for him are not there for him. But further, understanding now that Sidious is really the source of so much suffering in the galaxy, how does essentially the son of Sidious process this? What does he think he has to do because of all this? What does he think of everything Sidious ever taught him? And what does he think of the Jedi Knights? Because what he knew about them was inherited from Sidious.
Now he’s kind of coming online in terms of his ability to think for himself. But as to how far that’s going to take him? Well, we shall see, but this is more of a free-thinking, inquisitive Maul than we’ve ever seen before. And there’s a real insecurity to that. There’s a real insecurity to not being certain about everything. So you’ll notice he is actually reaching out to people somewhat, especially since he had loyalty at one point. He had Savage Opress, which is one of the most ridiculously rare things in the galaxy, for a dark side user to be loyal. And yet he had it. Then Sidious took it away from him. So he’s dealing with all that stuff. He’s dealing with the trauma of that, and we’re going to see where that sends him in this story.
Gideon, obviously, you start developing the character of Devon when you get the scripts, and you talk it out with the writers and creators, but what did you only learn about her when you got into the recording studio?
Adlon: She’s very deep. She’s very young, but she’s old. [Devon]’s been around, and I think she’s experienced more at her young age than most people do in a lifetime. And you can really see that through the writing. It’s conveyed. But also just the way that she acts out her story. That’s what I felt through her and through performing what was written for.
I think that definitely comes across. She feels like an old soul. I don’t know what the term they use in the galaxy is, but definitely an old soul.
What are you both most excited for people to see when the show premieres?
Witwer: (a long laugh) The finale. Yeah, I think so. Devon, what do you think? I just called you, Devon, by the way.
Adlon: I love it. I didn’t even flinch.
Honestly, the animation style is so different, so beautiful, and everybody worked so hard. It’s seamless. Looks like a painting, really. And also the performances and the writing. I’m just excited for people to see what we’ve all done with it. Obviously, to see this new storyline and learn about this new chapter of Star Wars, but really, how people recognize what it took for all these artists to put this together. That is what excites me the most.
Witwer: We were told the mandate was, do everything that we’ve done before, but better.” See if we can bring the performances to new heights, make the animation better, make the lighting more evocative, make the cinematography more exciting and surprising, make the writing more jagged and interesting. Just everything. We just tried to up the ante when it came to every single aspect of production.
And, in some ways, what I’m most proud of is that you don’t need to know anything to watch this show. Everyone always wants it, “Oh, well, what do I need to know about Maul? Didn’t he die? Did he die? Did he come back?” All this stuff? None of that. None of that. You don’t need to know any of it. We’ve got you.
This show, for as deep as it goes into the Star Wars lore, this could be a show that someone who’s never seen Star Wars could enjoy just like everyone else. There’s no homework you have to do. We will walk you through it. In the same way that George Lucas, in the very first Star Wars, had a dizzying amount of information to get through about space wizards and the Clone Wars. Like, “Your dad fought the Clone Wars and all this stuff. And the dog who was the co-pilot to the spaceship and the Jawas and the Galactic Empire, Darth Vader and droids,” all of that information in Star Wars felt breezy. And I’m very proud that in this show, we likewise introduce our version of Star Wars in a very breezy manner.
I would love to hear what a new audience member would think about it because it was designed for them and the fans at the same time.
I’m an old fan, so I can’t give you that answer. I can tell you I think this might be the best-looking animated Star Wars series yet.
Witwer: (Animation Supervisor) Keith Kellogg, the animation team, (cinematography and effects lead) Joel Aron, all of those guys, they just killed it. They killed it. And (executive producer) Athena Portillo, I mean, she’s the general. She really, really pushed all of these departments to go as far as they could go.
Maul: Shadow Lord premieres at Disney+ on April 6, 2026.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. He does not want to root for Maul, but is start to waver. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
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