Maul – Shadow Lord is the latest series from Lucasfilm Animation, a show that follows in the footsteps of projects like The Bad Batch, Rebels, and The Clone Wars. Not only does the show live up to those predecessors, but it also exceeds them in many ways, including its beautiful animation; though, things might have been different with Star Wars legend Dave Filoni's guiding hand.
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord, streaming on Disney+, is set after the Clone Wars and follows Maul (voiced by Sam Witwer) as he attempts to rebuild his criminal syndicate and seek revenge against those who wronged him. The Direct Witwer for an exclusive interview, where the actor revealed how Lucasfilm Chief Creative Officer for Star Wars, Dave Filoni, contributed to their ambitious animated series.
Witwer revealed that early on in the project's development, Filoni "gave the mandate that [they] must improve every aspect of [their] filmmaking procedure for Lucasfilm Animation."
This meant that "the animation has to be better, the rigs have to be better, the choreography has to be better, the cinematography has to be better, the editing has to be better, the scripts have to be better, the acting has to be better." Needless to say, it was a tall order.
Of course, for those who have seen the first eight episodes of the Disney+ series, it's clear they not only pulled it off but went further than fans could hope for. It's arguably the most beautiful animation the studio has ever pulled off, according to an overwhelming majority of the show's fanbase.
One new element incorporated into the process while creating Maul – Shadow Lord was shooting reference footage, especially since Witwer himself came from live-action acting. "The idea [was not] that the animators must copy what I'm doing," the actor explained, but instead, it was meant for them to "have some fun" as they brainstormed "how [they] can improve this."
Part of this reference footage led Witwer to paint his face in pseudo-Darth Maul makeup. Doing this made him discover that "when you put the pain on the contacts, you don't need to move as much to create that intimidation." He went on to note that when it came to his overall performance, "if you pull back, it becomes very intimidating."
More of The Direct's interview with Maul – Shadow Lord star Sam Witwer can be read and viewed below, which includes conversations about him potentially becoming the character in live action, exploring new sides of Maul in this show, and a tantalizing tease of the final two episodes—the last fans will see of the series until Season 2 makes its way to Disney+.
Dave Filoni Demanded Improvements, and Maul – Shadow Lord Did Just That
Dave Filoni Demanded Better, And So That's What We Got.
While speaking to The Direct about Lucasfilm Animation's latest series Maul – Shadow Lord, star Sam Witwer, who voices the titular character, dove into Dave Filoni's contributions to the series.
Witwer revealed that "Dave Filoni gave the mandate that we must improve every aspect of our filmmaking procedure for Lucasfilm Animation..."
Sam Witwer: Dave Filoni gave the mandate that we must improve every aspect of our filmmaking procedure for Lucasfilm Animation. What does that mean? Well, that means that the animation has to be better, the rigs have to be better, the choreography has to be better, the cinematography has to be better, the editing has to be better, the scripts have to be better, the acting has to be better, right?
So it was on Witwer, producer Athena Portillo, and the rest of the team to figure out just what that looked like in practice.
Witwer: Well, Athena Portillo, our general, our producer, who was watching over all of us, had to figure out how to do that. How do you achieve that? How do you go to each department and break open what they do and say, 'Let's go further,' you know? Because Lucasfilm Animation was doing great. I love 'The Bad Batch,' you know. But Athena's job was to make it real. How do you improve these things?
Portillo suggested to Witwer that they start shooting some reference footage, especially since he himself had come from a live-action film.
Witwer: So let's talk about the acting part and also the animation. We were talking, and she said, 'Why wouldn't we shoot some reference?' I mean, you come from live action. That's your training... And then we started talking about that. And so then, next thing I know, I'm on a plane to Lucasfilm, and I'm meeting with the animators, and we are shooting all these initial scenes, not with the idea that the animators must copy what I'm doing. That's not, that wasn't the idea.
The idea was, here's a bunch of ideas. You know what I mean, here's, let me throw some ideas into the hat. Or have you considered this? Or look at the way I'm moving when I do this, or look at what I do with my eyes. Is that useful to you? It's that type of thing, because Keith Kellogg is very capable, and his team is extremely good, and the CG artists are unbelievable. They're incredible. And so it wasn't about they need help. It was about, hey, let's have some fun. Let's play with how we can improve this.
To do this, as some fans spotted in some behind-the-scenes photos of Witwer during the production of Maul – Shadow Lord, Witwer put on some Maul-inspired makeup to help them out.
Witwer: So the reason I painted my face up was I needed to know how—what do I need to do with my face to play the character, to make it in line with what they've done in animation, and also in live action, because I've never worn the face paint. And what I discovered is, when you put the paint on and the contacts, you don't need to move as much to create that intimidation. In fact, if you pull back, it becomes very intimidating.
So I needed to learn that. And the animators, I suppose, it helped, at first, for them to see those lines and understand how they could move in a certain way. And then after that, the reference we've shot, we haven't bothered to put on the because we learned what we needed to learn. Yeah. So now, when I shoot reference, I just do it with my mug.
Some fans were convinced that Witwer putting on all that makeup was him potentially aiming to play Darth Maul in live-action one day, though Witwer confirmed that wasn't the case.
Sam Witwer: No, it was not me maneuvering for a job. Nothing like that. I think Ray Park's performance was electrifying in 'Phantom Menace,' you know, and Peter [Serafino's voice] has given me the extraordinary foundation with which to start building the vocal performance, and then the beautiful design by Ian McKay. Like, you know, we're standing on the shoulders of giants when it comes to this stuff.
Sam Witwer on Exploring Darth Maul in New Ways
"I've Always Had Questions About This Guy and This Version of the Character."
- The Direct: "What has your time on this show kind of allowed you to explore or do that you've never done with Maul or any other role in this universe?"
Sam Witwer: I've always had questions about this guy and this version of the character. I get to answer those questions, at least for myself [and] I do hope for the audience as well. And the challenge [for him] is, you know, he's a deeply conflicted character, which I believe almost all of the dark side characters are.
When we did the Spider-Maul version of the character, which was a wounded version of him, he was physically shattered. He was emotionally damaged, and he was mentally unstable, and also physically had legs made of garbage, animated by the dark side of the force, we built in the vulnerability of the character right off the hop...
What you were seeing from Spider-Maul is, in fact, the madness and the suffering of the Dark Side of the Force. You know, Yoda will tell you that it is the quick and easy path, but it is a path to suffering. It's a dead end, and it's very hard to break out of. So I thought it'd be interesting if this character is, in fact, trying to break out of it in this show. Now, him trying to do something does not presuppose that he will succeed, but that tension there might be interesting to watch something like that.
Sam Witwer Teases Maul – Shadow Lord's Final Two Episodes
"The Last Two Episodes Are All About Choices."
While speaking to The Direct, Maul – Shadow Lord star Sam Witwer teased what fans can expect from the final two episodes of the show's first season.
Sam Witwer: The last two episodes are all about choices. There are choices that are made in the last two episodes, and there is a lot of dramatic tension for the fact that the choices that Maul makes are now from a new place. He has a new understanding, because this show really is about a man who is finally taking the moment to discover who he is, and with that statement, I won't let him do this to anyone else.
There is a real sense of responsibility that Maul is walking into the last two episodes with, a real sense of responsibility that he has never had before. However, all of that good intention, we're going to see what he does with those when the only thing that he has been given, the only tools he has at his disposal, are the tools from Darth Sidious. You know, how do good intentions relate to the action that they generate, and how far away are the good intentions from the action? Are they in line? Are they aligned? Or are they two totally different things entirely? That's what we deal with in the last two episodes. And I'm quite in love with them. I like them a lot.
The entire interview between Maul – Shadow Lord star Sam Witwer and The Direct can be viewed below:
