Darth Maul's Secret Spock Connection Settles The Star Trek Vs. Star Wars Rivalry

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Warning: The first section of this article will have spoilers for Maul – Shadow Lord season 1. The start and end of the spoilers will be clearly marked!

Luckily, the franchise brought him back in animated form, allowing him to become one of the best villains in Star Wars. Now, Maul is shining in his very own TV show, which has already been renewed for season 2. In celebration of its release, the cast of Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord has been hitting the convention circuit, sharing behind-the-scenes stories, discussing their characters, and meeting fans.

A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away · Eight Questions How Well Do You Know Star Wars? “The Force will be with you. Always.”

🗡️Jedi OrderLight-side guardians

⚡The SithRule of two

⚙️The RebellionA new hope

🪓Bounty HuntersThis is the way

👑The EmpireOrder 66

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The original Star Wars film — later retitled Episode IV: A New Hope — opened in just 32 American theatres and proceeded to become the highest-grossing film of its era, redefining what summer blockbusters could be. In which year did it premiere?

A1975 B1977 C1979 D1980

✓ Correct! 1977 — specifically May 25. 20th Century Fox had so little faith in the project they only opened it in 32 theatres at first; queues quickly stretched around the block, and the film expanded to over 1,000 screens within months. It earned $307 million in its initial domestic run, won six Academy Awards (with another four nominations) and inverted Hollywood’s economics for the next 50 years.

✗ Wrong. The answer is 1977. 1975 is when the script was being shopped around. 1979 is when Star Trek: The Motion Picture released as a Star Wars-shaped countermove. 1980 is The Empire Strikes Back. The original Star Wars is May 25, 1977.

A New Hope’s writer-director was a then-32-year-old American Graffiti veteran who’d struggled to get the project greenlit and famously took back-end profit and merchandising rights in lieu of a higher salary — the deal that would build a billion-dollar company. He returned to direct the prequels but stepped away from the original-trilogy sequels. Name him.

ASteven Spielberg BGeorge Lucas CFrancis Ford Coppola DIrvin Kershner

✓ Correct! George Lucas. The merchandising rights he kept (because Fox didn’t value them) became the financial bedrock of Lucasfilm and the basis of the modern toys-and-licensing megabusiness. After A New Hope, Lucas produced but didn’t direct Empire Strikes Back (Irvin Kershner) or Return of the Jedi (Richard Marquand), then directed all three prequels (1999–2005). He sold Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012 and stepped away from creative control of the sequels.

✗ Wrong. The answer is George Lucas. Steven Spielberg was Lucas’s close friend (and the godfather of his post-A-New-Hope career) but never directed a Star Wars film. Coppola was Lucas’s mentor at USC and at American Zoetrope. Irvin Kershner directed Empire Strikes Back. The original is Lucas’s.

In 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back, Darth Vader delivers cinema’s most-misquoted line at the climax of his Cloud City duel with Luke Skywalker. Vader severs Luke’s hand and reveals their relationship. The exact line is — for the record — “No, I am your father.” What relationship does it confirm?

AVader is Luke’s uncle BVader is Luke’s father (Anakin Skywalker) CVader is Obi-Wan’s brother DVader is Han’s father

✓ Correct! Vader is Anakin Skywalker, Luke’s father. The reveal was so jealously guarded that Mark Hamill was only told the real line on set the day they shot it (the script said “Obi-Wan killed your father”), and even James Earl Jones recorded the dub without knowing the full plot context. The line — commonly misquoted as “Luke, I am your father” — rewrote what trilogies could pull off and is broadly considered cinema’s most famous twist.

✗ Wrong. The answer is that Vader is Luke’s father, Anakin Skywalker. The whole foundation of the Skywalker saga collapses to this single twist: Anakin (the Jedi prodigy of the prequels) becomes Vader after his fall. Luke and Leia are revealed in Return of the Jedi to be his twin children, separated at birth.

Yoda — the green, ear-twitching Jedi Master — was puppeted and voiced from his Empire Strikes Back debut through the prequels and the sequels by a single Muppet-show-veteran performer who also voices Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear. Name him.

AJim Henson BFrank Oz CSteve Whitmire DBrian Henson

✓ Correct! Frank Oz — longtime Jim Henson collaborator and voice/puppet work on Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle and Grover. Oz puppeted Yoda directly through The Phantom Menace before CGI took over for Attack of the Clones onward, but he’s continued to voice the character through the sequels and animated series. Yoda’s syntax was developed jointly by Lucas and Oz to feel old, foreign and hard-won.

✗ Wrong. The answer is Frank Oz. Jim Henson was Oz’s mentor and collaborator (he created the Muppets) but didn’t voice Yoda. Steve Whitmire took over Kermit after Henson’s 1990 death. Brian Henson is Jim’s son and runs the Henson company today. Yoda is Frank Oz’s.

In a deal that reshaped Hollywood, Disney acquired Lucasfilm Ltd. for $4.05 billion in cash and stock — bringing Star Wars, Indiana Jones, ILM and Skywalker Sound under the Disney umbrella. The deal also kicked off the sequel trilogy production. In what year did Disney close the acquisition?

A2009 B2010 C2012 D2014

✓ Correct! 2012 — specifically October 30. The deal was announced with simultaneous reveal that a Star Wars Episode VII was being developed for a 2015 release. Lucas had been quietly preparing his exit from Lucasfilm for years; Kathleen Kennedy had been brought in as co-chair months earlier specifically to take over. The Force Awakens came out three years later, in December 2015, kicking off the modern era.

✗ Wrong. The answer is 2012. 2009 is when Disney acquired Marvel ($4 billion). 2010 is the year before Lucas began signalling exit plans. 2014 is when production proper began on The Force Awakens. Lucasfilm joined Disney on October 30, 2012.

The Mandalorian launched as Disney+’s flagship original on November 12, 2019 — the day the streaming service itself launched. Created by Jon Favreau and run by Dave Filoni, the show centres on a helmeted bounty hunter who reluctantly becomes a foster father to “The Child” (Grogu). What is the Mandalorian’s real name?

ABoba Fett BCobb Vanth CDin Djarin DBo-Katan Kryze

✓ Correct! Din Djarin — played by Pedro Pascal under the helmet (with body double Brendan Wayne handling much of the physical work). The Mandalorian is widely credited with reviving Star Wars on TV, popularising the StageCraft LED-volume virtual production technology now used across Hollywood, and turning baby Yoda — Grogu — into the meme-economy phenomenon of late 2019. Three seasons have aired with a feature film, The Mandalorian & Grogu, set for May 2026.

✗ Wrong. The answer is Din Djarin. Boba Fett is the famous bounty hunter from the original trilogy, with his own Disney+ spinoff (The Book of Boba Fett, 2021). Cobb Vanth is the Tatooine marshal played by Timothy Olyphant. Bo-Katan Kryze is the Mandalorian princess played by Katee Sackhoff. The Mandalorian himself is Din Djarin.

Order 66 — the secret directive that turns the Republic’s clone troopers against their Jedi commanders and effectively ends the Jedi Order — is dramatised in the climactic third act of which prequel film?

AEpisode I: The Phantom Menace BEpisode II: Attack of the Clones CEpisode III: Revenge of the Sith DRogue One

✓ Correct! Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005). Palpatine’s “Execute Order 66” comm to the clone armies leads to the methodical, planet-by-planet liquidation of the Jedi Order — one of the saga’s most operatic sequences, scored to John Williams’ “Anakin’s Betrayal” cue. The same film features Anakin’s fall to the Dark Side, the Mustafar duel with Obi-Wan, and his rebirth as Darth Vader in the suit. Widely re-evaluated as the best of the prequels.

✗ Wrong. The answer is Revenge of the Sith. Phantom Menace ends with Qui-Gon’s death and the unveiling of Darth Maul. Attack of the Clones ends with the Clone Wars beginning. Rogue One is set just before A New Hope, after Order 66 has long since happened. The Order 66 sequence is the climax of Episode III.

Andor (2022–25) is widely regarded as the most adult, politically literate Star Wars project ever made — a slow-burn prequel to Rogue One charting Cassian Andor’s radicalisation against the Empire. The series was created and showrun by a writer/director best known for the original Bourne trilogy and Michael Clayton. Name him.

ATony Gilroy BRian Johnson CJon Favreau DDave Filoni

✓ Correct! Tony Gilroy. He’d previously been brought in for extensive Rogue One reshoots in 2016, and Lucasfilm gave him near-total creative independence on Andor. Season 1 (12 episodes, 2022) is widely regarded as Star Wars’ finest dramatic writing ever; Season 2 (also 12 episodes, in four three-episode jumps across 2025) closes the gap to Rogue One’s opening scene. Gilroy’s prior credits: Bourne Identity / Supremacy / Ultimatum / Legacy, plus directing Michael Clayton (2007).

✗ Wrong. The answer is Tony Gilroy. Rian Johnson directed The Last Jedi (2017). Jon Favreau created The Mandalorian and is Lucasfilm’s Disney+-era animation/live-action lieutenant. Dave Filoni runs the Filoniverse (Clone Wars, Rebels, Ahsoka, the upcoming Heir to the Empire film). Andor is Tony Gilroy’s.

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Jedi Master — or moisture farmer on Tatooine?

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While on-site at Denver Fan Expo 2026, where Screen Rant was the official media partner, I attended the Saturday afternoon Maul – Shadow Lord panel on Blue Bird 1B main stage. Sam Witwer (Maul), Vanessa Marshall (Rook Kast), David W. Collins (Spybot), and Matthew Wood (General Grievous) all had exciting things to share.

However, one of the most interesting things explored during the panel was Sam Witwer’s perspective on his titular, iconic character. While most view Maul as a villain, Witwer sees him as an individual with humanity and a deeply emotional interior. What's more, the actor revealed that Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy and his Vulcan-human character, Spock, directly inspired this interpretation of Maul.

Sam Witwer’s Characterization Of Darth Maul Was Influenced By Leonard Nimoy's Spock

It's pretty unarguable that Maul is a villain in Star Wars. As such, Sam Witwer could very easily have flattened Maul down into the traditional archetype, but he resisted this idea. He instead chose to portray the character as a good person who does bad things because he doesn't know any other way. This was all rooted in a statement from Leonard Nimoy that shaped his perspective on both acting as a whole and on the character. At Denver Fan Expo, Witwer explained:

[Leonard Nimoy] said something about Spock. And it completely changed the way I looked at acting, and it certainly had everything to do with how I approached Darth Maul. He said, 'I find it interesting that people always come to me and say, "What's it like to play a character with no feelings? Spock has no feelings."' He says, Well, 'that's funny, because I always played Spock as an extraordinarily emotional man who was trying to keep a lid on it.' Right? So I played Darth Maul as – he's actually a really good guy, but his ability to show you what his intentions are all translated through the worst possible choices and super villain tune, tools, you know?”

While I didn't pick up on this train of thought prior to the panel, Witwer's mentality becomes clear upon further reflection. There are clear glimmers of him having good intentions throughout Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord season 1.

START OF SPOILERS

Looking back at it, there are moments where Maul does actually seem to connect with Devon, but they are largely overshadowed by his manipulating her and tearing her down. That's where Darth Sidious' training comes in. The only way he knows how to mentor someone is through trauma. In some scenes, Maul will pause briefly before speaking, and those moments of silence are his vulnerability creeping through. Similarly, we see him actually getting tired and scared when Vader shows up. He isn't just jealous. He is genuinely fearful of Vader and all that he represents. On top of that, there is the scene where he has a breakdown, realizing the life that Darth Sidious stole from him.

In the panel, Sam Witwer also specifically referenced the scene at the end of Maul – Shadow Lord where he betrays Doki as an example of him being a good person who shows his intentions in bad ways. He tried telling Doki that he couldn't win the battle by following the Jedi way. Doki didn't listen. Ultimately, Witwer said that Maul saw Doki dying as a sacrifice necessary to save Devon.

END OF SPOILERS

I think it's clear that Maul will never get redemption. However, the new perspective on the character really frames the show differently, and that all comes back to Leonard Nimoy's interpretation of Spock.

Star Trek & Star Wars Have Also Impacted Each Other In Many Other Ways

For those of us who grew up with the intense Star Trek vs. Star Wars rivalry, it can feel quite jarring to hear an actor from one openly admit that the other inspired them. The Star Trek or Star Wars question was omnipresent and intense in sci-fi spaces throughout the ‘80s, ‘90s, and ‘00s. For those who weren’t in those spaces, just know that you would absolutely get judged by your answer.

Even the actors became involved. In 2011, Shatner famously called Star Wars “derivative” of Star Trek. He reduced the competition to just special effects, while lauding his own franchise as “stories that involved humanity and philosophical questions” (via the Official William Shatner Page on YouTube). Fisher clapped back by saying Star Trek “isn’t in the same league” as Star Wars and taking multiple comedic jabs at Star Trek, seemingly meant to ragebait fans. For example, she said “Klingon” sounds like laundry detergent and her space buns beat Spock’s ears any day (via Carrie F. Fisher on YouTube).

Luckily, the tide seems to have shifted, and there's a lot more mutual respect and recognition. George Lucas has acknowledged that Star Wars exists thanks to Star Trek. In the documentary Trek Nation, he said this:

"Star Trek softened up the entertainment arena so that Star Wars could come along and stand on its shoulders. There was an effective group of people in the beginning who accepted it – that it wasn't that far out. For the studios, it was way far out, [they said] 'what is this?', but there was a fanbase out there, primarily the Star Trek fanbase, who understood sci-fi, understood visual sci-fi, and was ready for something like [Star Wars] to be in the feature arena."

Ben Burtt, the Oscar-winning sound designer and editor for the Star Wars films, also drew inspiration from Star Trek: The Original Series and later worked on the 2009 Star Trek movie reboot. Plus, Star Trek popularized many of the sci-fi terms that are used in Star Wars.

Meanwhile, Star Trek only became a blockbuster franchise on the big screen because of the popularity of Star Wars. Originally, Gene Roddenberry planned to make a second series called Star Trek: Phase II, but Star Wars became such a phenomenon that the show was reworked as Star Trek: The Motion Picture (via National Air and Space Museum). Most Star Trek movies used Industrial Light and Magic, the SFX house created for Star Wars.

At the 15th annual Star Trek convention in Las Vegas in 2016, William Shatner also acknowledged that Star Trek exists today because of Star Wars, even though the TV show technically came first (via Mashable). He said:

"Every year, there was the threat to be canceled. The third year, we were canceled, and everybody accepted it. [After Star Wars], at Paramount Studios, they were running around bumping into each other: 'What do we got?! What do we got to equal Star Wars? This is a big thing!' 'There was this thing that we canceled, under another management, it was called Star ... Trek? Let's resurrect that!'...It was Star Wars that thrust Star Trek into the people of Paramount's consciousness."

Considering Shatner’s previous statements, he is a clear example of how attitudes have shifted when it comes to Star Wars and Star Trek.

The Star Trek & Star Wars Rivalry Is Dying Down

Han Solo, Leia Organa, and Luke Skywalker hide behind Chewbacca in Star Wars A New Hope

Even though the franchises are considered rivals, it's clear that both Star Wars and Star Trek benefited from each other's existence. They have an interconnected history that cannot be erased, no matter how much people have previously pushed the rivalry between them. They still continue to shape each other to this day, which is clear from Sam Witwer’s comments about Maul and Spock. The good news is that it seems the rivalry is finally dying.

Star Trek and Star Wars are clearly better friends than they are enemies. It’s a relief that there isn’t as much tension between the fandoms of two franchises. Those of us who love Star Trek and Star Wars finally don't have to defend ourselves constantly. More people are coming to recognize that Star Wars and Star Trek differ in narrative style and tone, and that’s okay. Both have value in the world of sci-fi and space operas.