Will Darth Maul return in The Mandalorian season 2?

Warning: spoilers for The Mandalorian ahead

With Jon Favreau's The Mandalorian cementing itself as one of the best Star Wars entries of all time, Disney+'s sci-fi Spaghetti Western has unsurprisingly been renewed for a second season. However, does the cliffhanger ending of December 27's 'Chapter 8: Redemption' hint at the return of classic Star Wars villain, Darth Maul?

For those who need a refresher, Mando's trip across the cosmos ended with Giancarlo Esposito's Moff Gideon crashing in the desert and triumphantly emerging from the wreckage of his TIE fighter while wielding the mythical Darksaber. All of this might seem like a tenuous link to the horned Darth Maul, but it's important to note Maul's story goes far beyond his 'death' in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.

There is only one Darksaber in the entire galaxy, meaning its previous owners each have their own story of wielding the black blade.

As well as a tie to the Mandalorians thanks to its creation by Tarre Vizsla – a famous Mando who was the first to become a Jedi – the Darksaber has been held by a number of notable characters. Even though Vizsla's arc would be enough to flesh out season two, Darth Maul's role in both Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels is heavily soaked in Darksaber lore.

When Tarre Vizsla died, the Darksaber was stored in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant for centuries. It was eventually returned to the family and picked up by his ancestor, Pre Vizsla. When Pre Vizsla formed a radical Mandalorian offshoot known as the Death Watch, he originally hoped to team up with Darth Maul. Viszla betrayed Maul, who took Pre on in a deadly duel and cut his enemy down.

Although Maul struggled to keep hold of the Darksaber, he became synonymous with the fearsome weapon. When Rebels came to an end, the Darksaber was in the possession of Mandalore's new elected leader, Bo-Katan Kryze.

A lot has clearly happened in that time and there have been plenty of mentions of various Mandalorian conflicts during The Mandalorian's first run of episodes. Considering Gideon's dramatic reveal, it's safe to assume Kryze met a grisly end – possibly at the hands of the formidable Moff.

The idea of Maul swishing a saber in season two is more than just wild theorizing, thanks to the intervention of Star Wars actors Ray Park and Sam Witwer. Both Park and Witwer reprised their respective roles as Maul for Ron Howard's Solo: A Star Wars Story. Here, the dangerous Zabrak was revealed as the shadowy leader of Crimson Dawn. It was clear the studio had plans for where Maul (and Emilia Clarke's Qi'ra) could go next, but the movie's disappointing reception meant all ideas of a sequel were exiled to the Dagobah system.

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Posting on Instagram, Park teased the legion of Maul-lovers with a brooding shot of himself in full prosthetics. Elsewhere, Witwer responded to The Mandalorian's Darksaber finale and posted a simple tweet with the caption, "That's mine".

Maul's Solo appearance is estimated to be about 12 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin), his Rebels arc rounds off 1 year BBY, and The Mandalorian's timeline puts it 9 ABY (After the Battle of Yavin). It's a pretty lengthy 41-year gap since Maul's introduction in Episode I, but with Yoda living to a respectable 900, age is just a number in this franchise.

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There is one small problem when it comes to Maul twirling the Darksaber in season two, though.

Those who've kept up with their Star Wars canon will know Rebels ended Maul's life (again) when he was cut down by Obi-Wan Kenobi in season three's 'Twin Suns'. That being said, we've seen Maul survive a gruesome goodbye before and he could go full Palpatine to make a surprise comeback. If not, the mythology surrounding the Darksaber sounds like the perfect place to shoehorn Maul into the series for an atmospheric flashback.

Only those who have dived deep into franchise will know much about the Darksaber, so casual Mandalorian viewers will undoubtedly need a lesson in Sith 101 for season two.

Anyone from Maul to Bo-Katan Kryze could rear their head to fill in the Darksaber's gaps. Either way, Deadline reports more familiar faces from the Skywalker Saga will be making their presence felt when The Mandalorian eventually returns.

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Tom Chapman

Tom Chapman is a pop culture-loving writer and NCTJ-accredited Broadcast Journalist with over seven years of experience covering the small and silver screen. 

Starting his career with a post at Movie Pilot in Berlin, Tom took on freelancing full-time with regular stints at Digital Spy, Screen Rant and Comic Book Resources.

These days, you can still find him covering all things Marvel and Star Wars at Digital Spy, while dipping his toe in bylines at Yahoo! and IGN. 

Tom likes to think his spirit animal is a cross between Gale Weathers and Olenna Tyrell.

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