Brad Rau Will Supervise MAUL – SHADOW LORD (And That’s Actually Huge)

If you needed one more reason to take MAUL – SHADOW LORD seriously, here it is:

Brad Rau is officially the supervising director of the series.

And if that name rings a bell, it’s because Rau was also the supervising director of Star Wars: The Bad Batch.

That’s not just a nice trivia fact — it’s a real creative signal about what kind of show Lucasfilm Animation is building here.

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Brad Rau Is One of Lucasfilm Animation’s “Trust This Person” Names

Brad Rau isn’t new to Star Wars.

He’s been one of the steady hands behind the modern animated era, with credits across multiple Lucasfilm Animation projects — but The Bad Batch is the big one, and the one that matters most here.

If you watched The Bad Batch, you know the vibe:

• cinematic lighting
• heavy atmosphere
• slow-burn character moments
• “war story” pacing with emotional weight
• that constant feeling of danger even in quiet scenes

That’s exactly the kind of storytelling DNA you’d want in a Maul-focused series.

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Maul’s Timing Matters (And the Timeline Gets Dark Fast)

If you want to zoom out for a second and place MAUL – SHADOW LORD in the bigger timeline, it’s worth revisiting how old Darth Maul actually is — because his age and experience at this point explains a lot about how dangerous he really is.

Maul isn’t some reckless Sith rookie anymore.

By this era, he’s a survivor — sharper, more patient, and arguably more terrifying because he’s learned how to wait.

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What Does “Supervising Director” Actually Mean?

This isn’t the same as “directed one episode.”

In animation, supervising director is one of the most important roles in the production pipeline. It usually means:

• steering the overall visual direction
• overseeing tone and pacing across episodes
• ensuring consistency (shot style, movement, staging)
• helping define the “identity” of the show

So when Rau is supervising director on MAUL – SHADOW LORD, it strongly suggests the show will have a clear unified style — not an uneven mix of episodes that feel like different projects.

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Why The Bad Batch Connection Is Perfect for Maul

Maul is a character that needs:

• tension
• menace
• mood
• and a world that feels dirty and dangerous

He doesn’t belong in bright, toybox Star Wars.

And Lucasfilm knows it.

From what we know so far, MAUL – SHADOW LORD is set after The Clone Wars era, during the rise of the Empire — with Maul rebuilding power and training a new apprentice.

That setting is basically The Bad Batch’s home turf.

So putting Brad Rau in charge of the series’ directorial supervision feels less like a random staffing note… and more like Lucasfilm saying:

“Yeah. This one is going to go hard.”

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The Bigger Picture: Lucasfilm Animation Is Building the “Underworld Era”

Between The Clone Wars, Rebels, The Bad Batch, and now Maul – Shadow Lord, Lucasfilm Animation is clearly leaning into a long-form saga — one where the fall of the Republic and rise of the Empire is told through:

• outcasts
• criminals
• broken clones
• surviving Sith
• and the people caught in the middle

Maul is basically the poster child for that.

And if there’s anyone who understands how to make this era feel tense and cinematic, it’s the team behind The Bad Batch.

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Final Thoughts

Brad Rau supervising MAUL – SHADOW LORD is one of those pieces of news that sounds small…

…but it’s actually massive.

If The Bad Batch proved anything, it’s that Rau knows how to make animated Star Wars feel like prestige sci-fi rather than “just a cartoon.”

Now give him Darth Maul.

That’s how you get trouble in the best possible way.

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