Star Wars: Darth Maul Actor Reportedly Confident About Obi-Wan Film Happening

With Solo: A Star Wars Story now in theaters and the announcement that Lucasfilm was developing a Boba Fett film, audiences are wondering which classic character could be next to get the spin-off treatment. Ray Park, who played Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace, recently shared that he feels confident that an Obi-Wan Kenobi film will almost certainly happen.

Fan David Weizer shared on Twitter that he met Park at a convention, recalling, “And the last person I met for the weekend was Ray Park. Very nice guy! Had a chat with him about the character of Darth Maul and various Lucasfilm endeavors. I’m just gonna say he strongly implied that a Kenobi movie will happen so all the reports are PROBABLY legit.”

The current slate of Lucasfilm’s endeavors is slightly confusing, though Park’s comments might clear up a number of rumors.

Last week, The Hollywood Reporter claimed that Logan filmmaker David Mangold had been tapped to write/direct a standalone Boba Fett film, though Lucasfilm had yet to officially confirm this information. That report also claimed that a Boba Fett film is only one of many standalone character films the studio was developing, with the outlet claiming director Stephen Daldry is attached to helm an Obi-Wan Kenobi film, yet no official script has been confirmed.

This information contradicts previous rumors which pointed towards Obi-Wan being the next character to get a standalone film, with some reports claiming that shooting would begin as early as next year.

The release of Solo: A Star Wars Story adds some new factors to the equation, both narratively and from a box office perspective.

***WARNING: Spoilers below for Solo: A Star Wars Story***

In one of the film’s more surprising moments, Han’s ally Qi’ra reveals that she has been working with Maul, who survived his encounter with Obi-Wan and became a ruthless crime lord.

In the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, Obi-Wan encountered Maul in his new profession, with Park’s confidence in an Obi-Wan film moving forward possibly confirming that Maul could become an integral part of the film’s narrative, as he reprised his role for the brief Solo appearance.

Heading into the opening of Solo, many fans were excited for a new Star Wars adventure though few fans felt like this was a story that audiences “needed” to see. Kenobi’s journey after Revenge of the Sith and before A New Hope, however, has been the subject of fan speculation for years. Solo scored the lowest opening weekend of any of Disney’s Star Wars films, with its four-day totals being nearly $40 million lower than Rogue One‘s three-day totals.

It’s clear that Lucasfilm will need to reevaluate how they select future projects, so delivering audiences the Obi-Wan spinoff, possibly featuring Maul, might be the way to win back favor with its core audiences.

Solo: A Star Wars Story is in theaters now. Episode IX hits theaters on December 20, 2019.

Would you be excited for an Obi-Wan film? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

[H/T Twitter, weiser_david]