2026's Star Wars: The Clone Wars sequel will replace the show's main characters in a surprising way. The story of Lucasfilm's beloved animated series, which ran from 2008 to 2020, will continue next year with the release of the Sam Witwer-led Maul: Shadow Lord. Following the events of Clone Wars' epic finale, this new streaming show will grab the baton left behind by The Bad Batch, centering on the galaxy in the years after the Emperor's rise.
Speaking as part of a recent interview, Witwer revealed the upcoming Clone Wars follow-up will feature a new main character at its center. During an appearance at Rebel Scum Con, the Darth Maul voice actor revealed his resurrected Sith lord will stand in for Ahsoka Tano as the series' primary hero.
"[Shadow Lord] allows us to do things that we couldn't do before," Witwer remarked:
"Because we're doing a show that has Maul in the title, it allows us to do things that we couldn't do before. Like there were a few things that I pitched to Dave at 'Clone Wars' and I'm like, 'What if this?' And Dave's like, 'Yeah, no, Sam. No. Oh, god, no, Sam. No.'
He added that where previously there may have been subject matter he could not tackle as the character, as Clone Wars was ultimately "from Ahsoka's perspective," that is no longer the case, as this is "Maul's show:"
"But he would say, 'Listen, we can't do that because we're seeing this through Ahsoka's perspective. This isn't Maul's show, so we can't take time with that. And I never imagined he was thinking that Maul could have a show. So later when it was like, 'Oh, it's Maul's show,' then it's like, okay, now we're looking for those ideas of things you could only do in a Maul show. And we will be learning more about who he is and what's messing with him."
For all seven seasons of Clone Wars, Ashley Eckstein's Ahsoka Tano was the main character of the hit series. However, that has changed in the ensuing Clone Wars sequels, with characters like Clone Force 99 taking the spotlight in The Bad Batch and Ezra Bridger leading Star Wars: Rebels.
Despite focusing almost exclusively on Maul, Maul: Shadow Lord has been described as the next entry into the Clone Wars saga, sporting the same art style as the original animated series and following Maul in the wake of Clone Wars Season 7.
Maul: Shadow Lord will star Sam Witwer as the titular Dathomirian, adjusting to life in a post-Jedi galaxy. The animated series is scheduled to arrive on Disney+ sometime in 2026.
What Putting Maul in the Spotlight Means for Star Wars?
Maul: Shadow Lord putting Sam Witwir's longtime Star Wars villain at center stage could open up a fascinating door for the franchise post-Clone Wars.
While The Clone Wars was not all sunshine and rainbows for its entire seven-season run, Shadow Lord's focus on the endlessly tormented Maul inherently allows for an overall darker story to be told.
According to Witwer, the series will take place in the Star Wars galaxy, where "all of that color of the universe is being sucked out." It will follow Maul coming to grips with the reality of his pursuits during the Clone Wars, asking, 'Is this really the galaxy I was fighting so hard to see.
Because of this narrative table setting, Shadow Lord will seemingly be a much more introspective story, essentially serving as a character study of Maul rather than focusing on some large-scale intergalactic conflict or Earth-shattering new wrinkle in the Star Wars canon.
