Cullen Bunn Talks Upcoming Darth Maul Limited Series

With Rogue One: A Star Wars Story currently dominating the box office, the media giant that is Disney/Marvel is not content to rest on its laurels and will soon expand its much-lauded line of comics based on the popular science fiction franchise with the Darth Maul limited series. Say what you want about The Phantom Menace, but that particular Sith has developed a following in the time since that few villains are capable of amassing.

Given that, we expect this book, which is set to be penned by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Luke Ross, to sell generously. The author himself is fully aware of Maul’s immense popularity and, as such, jumped at the chance to take this project as he recently told Marvel.com:

“When editor Jordan D. White called me and asked if I’d be interested in writing a Darth Maul comic, I think I responded with an adamant “Yes!” before he had even finished the sentence. As you said, Maul is one of the coolest characters in the Star Wars galaxy. Star Wars is blessed with a wealth of characters that you want to know more about. I mean, every background character in every cantina in every hive of scum and villainy is ripe for further exploration. But Maul ranks right at the top. We’ve seen a few different sides of Maul: obedient killing machine, madman, crime lord, cunning strategist. I was excited to write a story that might show off all of those aspects of the character. I also find it fascinating that the Sith are taught to embrace their anger, but Maul—because of his master’s planning—has to keep his in check.”

With the Star Wars franchise spanning so many forms of media, a question often on the minds of many is where a given tale falls on the timeline. According to Bunn, this takes place before the Clone Wars animated series:

“Yes, this is long after the story I’m telling, but Clone Wars still helped to inform the character. This is where you are seeing a different side of Maul, really digging into what makes him tick. He’s more than just an attack dog. As far as I was concerned, those aspects of Maul were always there. We just didn’t see them in The Phantom Menace. The Maul I’m writing plays a lot closer to this version of the character, I think. There are little bits and pieces that are left unexplained here, and I am able to connect the dots a little in my book.”

Be sure to pick up a copy of Darth Maul #1 when it arrives in comic shops on Wednesday, February 1.