What characters return to the upcoming "Star Wars" movies has always been a point of contention. Many wonder at the return of major characters from the series to join the newer ones.

Villains are always an interesting point of contention as there are many that could return in some shape or form. While conversations over Darth Vader will crop up from time to time, one character whose return in cinematic form is also interesting is one that audiences got to know in only one movie -- Darth Maul.

Many people dislike "Episode I -- The Phantom Menace," but few would claim to hate the devil-like villain that kills Qui-Gon Jinn and then "meets his fate" at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi. At the end of the first episode (Spoiler Alert), the Sith Lord is sliced in half and meets his demise. Except he doesn't.

While the movies signal his death, the cartoon "The Clone Wars" resurrects Maul, giving him a chance to live on in the universe and for audiences to get to know him better. His main objective in that series is to seek out revenge on Obi-Wan. We all know he never gets it, but we don't know what ends up happening to bad guy.

In fact, at the end of the series his destiny is never addressed. Maul presumably still lives on after the Clone Wars and maybe even through the Imperial age.

Which begs the question, Will Lucasfilm and Disney bring him back?

Most likely but the form is unknown. Maul is a hugely popular character thanks to his appearance and double-edged saber. Bringing him back gives the company an ample opportunity to reap some rewards from merchandising. From a financial standpoint it makes a lot of sense.

The question is whether it will be in a movie. The chances of him reappearing in "Episode VIII" or "Episode IX" are minimal at best for two reasons. He likely does not fit into the new "Sith" order from a narrative standpoint as we know that Kylo Ren is the main antagonist and that Snoke is his master. Throwing in another villain for the sake of fan service seemingly makes no sense.

The other reason is because Disney and Lucasfilm have, to this point, tried to disassociate from the prequel trilogy in the marketing of the new movie. For them, bringing up the prequels is likely looking for trouble with the fans of the original trilogy that they are catering to fervently with "Episode VII." From a marketing standpoint it is also a risky move.

Now in a spinoff film it is highly possible that Maul could come back, but the question would be about how he meets his demise. There has long been a rumor that Disney is looking to make an Obi-Wan Kenobi movie that takes place in the interim between "Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" and "Episode IV: A New Hope." Since Maul has always been seeking vengeance on the Jedi, it would make sense that eventually he tracks him down on Tatooine (after all what does Obi-Wan do in all that time) and that the two eventually have a decisive duel that ends Maul's life and concludes his story.

Of course that would simply be too easy and a misstep as it lacks any inherent draw. If we know the ending then what is the point? Another possibility would be to do another stand alone film about the other Jedi scattered across the universe and them confronting Maul. In that case Maul could fight more groups of Jedi and could potentially kill some off, creating suspense about which Jedi eventually takes him out.

Or it might just happen in a comic book or novel or cartoon that makes life a lot easier to deal with. The cartoon seems most likely as it is unlikely Disney misses the chance to showcase such a popular character on a wider reaching medium.

Will Darth Maul return to a "Star Wars" movie?

Related