The big surprise character we are talking about here is Darth Maul, the mastermind behind the criminal syndicate Crimson Dawn. We already talked about his big reveal here, but now we get to hear what the writers have to say about the whole thing!

While talking to Uproxx, co-writer Lawrence Kasdan explained why he was excited about bringing the character into the film, saying:

“I was passionate about him all the way through. I sort of had planted the seeds early and I wanted it to be built that way. And I wanted to reference certain forms of martial arts that might lead to it. And the presence of someone who was so terrifying in this crime world that you had to know he was the guy who could control someone like Dryden. So he was part of the DNA of the thing.”

I liked how they were teasing the character all throughout the film. But it wasn’t until Maul was revealed that all of that stuff clicked. It was such a cool moment. When asked to elaborate on Maul’s presence in Solo, he talked a bit about Dryden Vos’ backstory:

“The line we love and keep referring to is, ‘we’ve seen some strange stuff across the galaxy.’ And we did really want to honor the line that he’s seen some weird stuff. And that’s why we thought it would be great for him to encounter a Jules Verne-type creature out in deep space, and made his experiences that have made his life rich and pressed the limits of what are possible.”

One big question that some fans have brought up, is that Han has always kind of been skeptical of The Force. So if he does encounter Maul in the Solo sequel, some fans think that would change his thoughts about the Jedi in A New Hope, but Kasdan doesn’t think so:

“I don’t think so. Because that’s part of what I love about this story. He doesn’t believe in the force and we know that ahead of time. But he doesn’t ever have to! The only acceptance he has – over three movies that I wrote! – is so slim. He never really comes to believe. He’s always the skeptic.” 

He makes a good point there. However, it will be very interesting to eventually see Han come face to face with Maul. I really like the relationship that they built between Han and Qi’ra, but that is a disaster waiting to happen.

In a separate interview with CB, Jon Kasdan opened up about the character’s backstory, saying:

“I loved that they took him and went an interesting place with him in Rebels, and in Clone Wars, and just sort of to expand on the myth of that character, and the idea that he survived. Rebels set us in a timeframe where we were sort of in the clear, and they were allowed to sort of do what they wanted with the Shadow Collective, with the whole, you know, backstory that they were playing with, and his movement into crime that would leave us in a clear zone, so that, by the time this movie happened, it was gray where he was.”

When asked about the future of the character in the franchise, he teased:

“It opened it up for us, and certainly I think there’s room to go back and forth with that character and knowmore, because he’s a rich, rich opportunity.” 

It’s hard to tell how Maul’s story arc will play out throughout these Solo films… if those films even get made. But it’s safe to say that he and Han’s paths will eventually cross because they both have one thing in common… Qi’ra. I have a feeling that things aren’t going to end well for her.