Han Solo Spoiler: A Major Character’s Surprise Cameo

If you haven’t seen the new Han Solo movie yet, stop reading because there are major spoilers ahead. They involve a major character who comes back in a surprise cameo. It’s one of the most talked about aspects of the film, which is a prequel that provides the back story of the iconic character originally played by Harrison Ford.

The ending of the new movie, Solo: A Star Wars Story, contained a major – and, for some, baffling – cameo.

That surprise: The revival of the iconic villain Darth Maul (remember him with the red face and head spikes?) In case you’ve forgotten, Darth Maul supposedly met his end in a major death scene in Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, slain by Obi-Wan Kenobi (sliced in half in fact). Yet there he is in the new Solo movie. The new Solo movie is supposed to be occurring at least 10 years before the time frame in Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope. In other words, it’s supposedly set in a time frame that occurs years after the Darth Maul death scene.

That’s the part that’s confusing a lot of people, at least those who’ve only watched the movies in the Star Wars franchise. How can he be alive? Solo: A Star Wars Story reveals that he runs a crime syndicate called Crimson Dawn.

There’s an answer to the question, though, and it’s tied into Star Wars‘ animated spinoffs. In a way, the movie makers are rewarding the most hard-core fans of Star Wars, who already know the answer because they’ve partaken in the animated series based on the franchise. Here’s what you need to know:

Darth Maul Has Robotic Legs

Darth Maul was sliced in half by Obi-Wan Kenobi, so how can he be alive? Look closely, though, in the Han Solo movie, and you will see that Darth Maul has robotic legs. He might have lost half of his body. However, body parts can be replaced and were.

Paul Bettany plays Dryden Vos, who is attached to a crime syndicate in Solo. The real ruler of the syndicate is then revealed to be… Darth Maul. Emilia Clarke plays Q’ira, and the new Solo film shows she’s in contact with Maul, which is another surprise.

Darth Maul appears in hologram form in the new Han Solo movie.

Darth Maul’s Survival Is No Surprise to Fans of the Animated Series

The villain appeared in the animated series The Clone Wars and Rebels after the Kenobi fight scene. Clone Wars revealed that Darth Maul lived through his supposedly fatal encounter with Obi-Wan.

The animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars ran on Cartoon Network. In the animated show, Darth Maul is retrieved by Savage Opress, another Zabrack, which, CNet notes, is “Darth Maul’s face-patterned, head-spiked species.” Darth Maul is “roaming the wasteland in rabid isolation” with robotic legs. Eventually, Maul receives “droid legs.” His resurgence is born.

CNet explains of the timeline: “The Clones Wars series takes place between Episode 2: Attack of the Clones and Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith. Solo: A Star Wars Story takes place some time after Episode 3, but before Episode 4: A New Hope.”

Darth Maul’s Diet Helped Him Survive

How did Darth Maul survive? “A diet of rats, some robotic spider legs,” according to Vanity Fair. In other words, people who’ve watched the animated shows won’t be as surprised by Darth Maul’s survival, although he’s dropped the “Darth” in Solo. Ray Park plays Darth Maul.

It’s also very possible that the new Solo movie could provoke a sequel because it starts back in time enough to have room for more spin offs, especially one that will explain more about Darth Maul’s survival. That was certainly the set up.

Maul was last seen on the big screen in a Star Wars movie in 1999, but he has a different voice in Han Solo. He is now voiced by Sam Witwer, “who played the character in The Clone Wars, Rebels and several video games,” Independent reports.

Fans Enjoyed Darth Maul’s Surprise Cameo

Fans took to social media to express surprise about Darth Maul’s survival. His appearance made some people very happy.

Some people didn’t like the timeline confusion, though.

What is Han Solo about? Alden Ehrenreich stars as the title character made famous by Harrison Ford. The movie provides some of the back story for Ford’s character leading up to the famous Star Wars films we are all familiar with, and it shows us what Han Solo’s life was like before the Rebellion. The film explains how Solo met such iconic characters such as Chewbacca and Lando Calrissian.

Is Harrison Ford in the new Han Solo movie? Find out, and learn what Harrison Ford thought about the film:

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