Sam Witwer has now said the quiet part out loud: Maul: Shadow Lord is not just a reward for longtime Clone Wars diehards. In a new YouTube interview, Witwer said the series was shaped so even people with little or no Star Wars background can jump in and understand it, which is a pretty revealing statement about what Lucasfilm seems to want this show to do. That matters because Maul has never exactly been a beginner-friendly character. His timeline is messy, his rage is old, and half his best material is spread across movies, animation, and a surprise live-action cameo. But Witwer said Shadow Lord was constructed “with an eye toward” new viewers, with the story designed to explain itself rather than demand homework first. That lines up with the official setup for the series, which places Maul on Janix in the early Imperial era as he tries to rebuild…
Dave Filoni
Dave Filoni Says Maul: Shadow Lord Will Finally Bring Some of George Lucas’ Maul Plans to Life
One of the most intriguing things Lucasfilm has said about Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord is not about a trailer shot or a release date. It is about George Lucas. In the official reveal coverage for the series, Dave Filoni said he and Lucas had discussed Maul’s future over the years, and that Shadow Lord became a way of honoring some of those original ideas and finally bringing part of that unseen future to light. That is a big statement for a character whose post-Phantom Menace life has already been one of the strangest and richest arcs in modern Star Wars. For the wider rollout, characters, and earlier reveals, check out our Maul: Shadow Lord complete guide. This Makes Shadow Lord Feel Bigger Than Just Another Spinoff What makes Filoni’s quote land is that it frames the series as more than a simple Maul comeback vehicle. In StarWars.com’s official…
D23 2026 Could Be a Big Night for Ahsoka Season 2 and Star Wars: Starfighter
Disney has now locked in one date that Star Wars fans should probably circle in red: the Disney Entertainment Showcase at D23 2026 will take place on August 14 at 7:00 p.m. at the Honda Center in Anaheim. Official D23 event pages describe the showcase as the place for stars, storytellers, “exciting reveals,” sneak peeks, and some of Disney’s biggest announcements across film, television, and streaming. That does not confirm any specific Star Wars reveals yet. But it absolutely puts the showcase on the radar as one of the most likely places for Lucasfilm to show something new. Ahsoka Season 2 Feels Like the Most Obvious Candidate If one Star Wars project looks naturally positioned for a D23 spotlight, it is Ahsoka Season 2. StarWars.com said in January that the series was already in production for its second season, with Dave Filoni continuing as showrunner. That alone makes August feel…
Maul: Shadow Lord Is Taking Inspiration From Heat — and That Might Be the Best News Yet
If Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord needed one more reason to look dangerous in the best possible way, here it is: writer and co-developer Matt Michnovetz says Heat was a key influence on the series.In a new interview, Michnovetz called the Michael Mann crime classic “a good touchstone for Maul,” framing the show around a noir-ish underworld atmosphere instead of a cleaner, more traditional Jedi-vs-Sith setup. If you want the broader picture around the series, release rollout, and earlier reveals, check out our Maul: Shadow Lord complete guide. This Is Exactly the Kind of Comparison Maul Should Be Getting Honestly, this makes a ton of sense. If you are building a show around Maul in the early Empire era, the obvious temptation would be to go full revenge opera and just let him glare at people in dark corridors for 10 episodes. That might still be fun, but it…
Maul: Shadow Lord Gets Its First Full Clip as Disney+ Premiere Nears
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord just took a small but meaningful step closer to launch. After months of teasers, posters, and trailers, the upcoming animated series has now released its first full clip, giving fans a more direct look at how Lucasfilm wants Maul’s return to feel in motion rather than in quick-cut marketing bursts. Star Wars News Net and Jedi News both flagged the clip’s arrival this week. For a broader breakdown of the series, release rollout, and what to expect, check out our Maul: Shadow Lord complete guide This Is Where the Real Promo Push Starts There is a difference between a trailer and an actual scene. Trailers sell mood. A full clip has to sell rhythm, dialogue, staging, and confidence. That is why this matters a bit more than it might seem at first glance. Maul: Shadow Lord already had attention thanks to its striking painterly…
John Boyega Says He’s Had Talks With Dave Filoni About Returning as Finn
John Boyega has just given Star Wars fans a small but very real reason to start paying attention to Finn again. During an appearance at MegaCon Orlando, an audience member reportedly shouted, “Get Dave on the phone,” referring to new Lucasfilm President and Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni. Boyega’s answer was simple: “I actually have, actually.” Multiple entertainment outlets have since picked up the moment as confirmation that he has at least spoken with Filoni about a possible Star Wars return. A Small Quote With Big Finn Energy This is not a casting announcement. It is not Lucasfilm confirming a new movie, series, or Finn-led project. But it is still notable. Boyega has had a complicated relationship with Star Wars in the years since the sequel trilogy, openly discussing disappointment with how Finn’s arc was handled. That is why this quote lands harder than a throwaway convention soundbite normally would….
Sigourney Weaver Says Colonel Ward Goes Way Back With Leia — and That Suddenly Makes The Mandalorian and Grogu More Interesting
For a while, Colonel Ward felt like one of those Star Wars movie characters who exists mostly as a name, a uniform, and a lot of fan speculation. Sigourney Weaver was in, the trailers showed her looking important, and everyone more or less assumed she would be the serious New Republic authority figure who sends Din Djarin off to deal with a mess. Which, to be fair, still sounds true. But Empire’s new coverage adds one much better detail: Ward apparently has history with Princess Leia. And just like that, she stops feeling like generic “new character in a control room” material and starts feeling like someone with real roots in this era of Star Wars. Colonel Ward Is Not Just Some Random New Republic Officer According to the new Empire details relayed by Jedi News, Weaver says Colonel Ward and Leia “go way back.” That is the kind of…
Empire’s Mandalorian and Grogu Coverage Just Made the Movie Feel a Lot More Real
For a while, The Mandalorian and Grogu has had that slightly weird Star Wars-project energy where everyone knows it exists, everyone knows it is important, but it still somehow feels a little abstract. Not anymore. Empire’s May 2026 issue is a full-on world-exclusive preview, built around new imagery and interviews with Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, and Jeremy Allen White, and it is very clearly the point where this thing stops feeling like “that Mando movie coming at some point” and starts feeling like an actual event. Empire’s issue went on sale March 12, and Lucasfilm’s official film page still has the release date locked for May 22, 2026. Pedro Pascal Apparently Found Out About the Movie the Same Way We Did The funniest detail to come out of the new coverage might be that Pedro Pascal was not sitting on some giant secret master plan all…
New Mandalorian and Grogu TV Spot Keeps the Plot Murky — But the Movie’s Vibe Is Getting Much Clearer
Star Wars marketing loves doing this thing where it gives you just enough new footage to make you lean forward, and then immediately refuses to explain anything useful. That is pretty much where we are now with The Mandalorian and Grogu. A new US TV spot has surfaced, Empire’s new cover story is feeding the hype machine, and while Lucasfilm still is not exactly laying the whole plot out on the holotable, the tone of the movie is starting to come into focus. The New TV Spot Is Small, But It Does Its Job The fresh TV spot is short and pretty cagey, so this is not one of those “suddenly we know the entire third act” situations. But it does add a little new footage and keeps hammering home the same basic idea: this is still very much a Din-and-Grogu movie first, even if the scale is clearly bigger…
Kathleen Kennedy Confirms Grogu Still Won’t Speak in The Mandalorian & Grogu — and Says Filoni’s Lucasfilm Transition Was a 10-Year Plan
Kathleen Kennedy just dropped two very clean, very quotable Star Wars updates in a Variety interview — one about Grogu, and one about Lucasfilm’s leadership shift. And both are the kind of details that quietly tell you what era of Star Wars we’re walking into next. Grogu is going big-screen… and still won’t say a word Asked what it was like the first time she “heard Grogu speak,” Kennedy flipped the premise and used Grogu as the perfect example of a character that has to emote without dialogue. Her answer is blunt: audiences are going to fall even deeper in love with him on the big screen, and he never speaks a word. She also explicitly confirms Grogu won’t suddenly gain speech in The Mandalorian & Grogu — despite Yoda’s famous broken-English cadence. In other words: no “Grogu talks now” twist. No “cute sidekick monologue.” The character is staying in…
THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU Is Bringing Star Wars Back to Theaters — and Filoni Calls It a “Different Era” Than The Force Awakens
It’s been seven years since Star Wars last hit the big screen. The franchise closed the Skywalker Saga in 2019 with The Rise of Skywalker — and since then, the galaxy has lived on streaming. Now, Star Wars is officially pivoting back to cinemas with The Mandalorian and Grogu, and Empire’s new cover story frames it as a very different kind of theatrical comeback. Dave Filoni’s core point: this isn’t another “Episode VII moment.” It’s a film built around characters the audience already knows — and loves. “We’re in a completely different era of Star Wars now.” Filoni compares the theatrical return to The Force Awakens — but says the situation isn’t the same Filoni directly compares the scale of returning to theaters with The Mandalorian and Grogu to the cultural impact of The Force Awakens, while also stressing that Episode VII carried a unique weight: it was the start…
Sam Witwer Reveals New Insights Into Maul: Shadow Lord — Filoni’s Mandate, Maul’s Motivations, and Savage Opress’ Role
Fans of Star Wars are getting a deeper look at one of the franchise’s most complex villains. Sam Witwer, the voice and live-action performer associated with Darth Maul for years, has opened up in a new interview about the upcoming Maul: Shadow Lord series — and what makes this version of Maul so different. In an expansive interview with Star Wars: Insider, Witwer went into detail on everything from Dave Filoni’s mandate for the show to Maul’s evolving motivations, his experience filming live-action scenes, and the role his brother Savage Opress will play. Here’s what we learned. “Filoni’s Mandate Was Clear” When asked what Dave Filoni’s mandate was for Maul: Shadow Lord, Witwer didn’t hold back. “Filoni’s thing was always centering Maul in his own story but in a way that feels earned and connected to the larger mythology.” Unlike earlier appearances where Maul was a secondary antagonist or a…
Katee Sackhoff Jokes About “Job Security Forever” as Bo-Katan in Star Wars
Bo-Katan Kryze might not be going anywhere anytime soon—at least if Katee Sackhoff has anything to say about it. In a recent interview, the Star Wars actress shared a humorous but telling insight about her Mandalorian character’s future, joking that she’s confident she’ll keep returning to the role for years to come. Why? Because Bo-Katan is closely tied to Star Wars creative chief Dave Filoni in a very personal way. “I Have Job Security Forever” Speaking about her future in the galaxy far, far away, Sackhoff joked that she feels secure continuing as Bo-Katan because the character is loosely inspired by someone very important to Filoni—his wife. “So I have job security forever,” Sackhoff said with a laugh when discussing Bo-Katan’s long-term future. The comment was delivered in good humor, but it highlights just how deeply rooted the character is within modern Star Wars storytelling and Filoni’s creative world. Bo-Katan’s…
Tony Gilroy Says Andor’s Ghorman Is Basically Greenland in New Interview
Andor has never exactly been subtle about its political themes, and according to creator Tony Gilroy, that’s very much by design. In a new interview discussing the relevance of the series and its real-world inspirations, Gilroy made a striking comparison between the planet Ghorman and modern geopolitical tensions—specifically referencing Greenland. “Ghorman is Greenland. Ghorman is anything. ‘We want the rare earth, we want this.’ It really is just a crude laundry list of moves that they have… it rhymes with the show.” The comment reinforces something many fans have already picked up on: Andor isn’t just telling a Star Wars story. It’s reflecting real-world power struggles, resource conflicts, and political maneuvering through a galaxy far, far away. A Star Wars Story With Real-World Parallels Gilroy has been open from the start that Andor draws heavily from historical and contemporary politics. From authoritarian crackdowns to corporate-state alliances and resistance movements, the…
Tony Gilroy Shuts Down Rumors of Tension Between Him and Dave Filoni Over Andor
Star Wars fans love a good behind-the-scenes drama almost as much as a lightsaber duel—but according to Andor creator Tony Gilroy, the rumored friction between him and Lucasfilm creative chief Dave Filoni simply doesn’t exist. In a new interview, Gilroy addressed speculation that Filoni may have disliked Andor or had creative disagreements with the team behind the critically acclaimed series. His response? A very clear and repeated no. “No. We’ve only met a couple times, and we’ve only had a half-a-dozen conversations over the last ten years… We’ve always gotten along with those guys, and we’ve never had anything but high praise for everything that they’ve done.” Gilroy went on to emphasize that the success of modern Star Wars Disney+ content—particularly The Mandalorian—is the very reason Andor was able to exist in the first place. “We only have our show because of them, and we’ve always said that was true….
Embo Returns in The Mandalorian & Grogu — And Yes, His Language Still Comes From French Smurfs Books
With The Mandalorian & Grogu bringing back fan-favorite bounty hunter Embo, one of the strangest and funniest pieces of Star Wars trivia is suddenly relevant again. Because while Embo may look like one of the coolest warriors in the galaxy… his mysterious language has one of the most unexpected origins in franchise history. Dave Filoni Created Embo’s Language by Accident When Dave Filoni and the The Clone Wars team were developing Embo, they faced a creative challenge:What should this silent, hat-wearing bounty hunter actually sound like? Instead of building a fully constructed alien language from scratch, Filoni did something far more improvisational. He recorded himself reading from his editor’s French Smurfs books — originally meant for his child — and used that as placeholder dialogue for Embo. The idea was simple:Use something foreign-sounding and slightly garbled to create a believable alien voice while they figured out a final direction. But…
Dathomir Was Originally Planned as a Location in The Acolyte
One of the most interesting design revelations from The Art of Star Wars: The Acolyte shows that The Acolyte almost took a major detour into one of the darkest corners of Star Wars lore. Dathomir — the infamous homeworld of the Nightsisters — was originally intended to be part of the series’ early worldbuilding plans. Specifically, Mother Aniseya’s temple was first conceived as being located on Dathomir before the creative direction shifted. Why the Change Happened According to the art book’s development insights, a key piece of feedback came from Dave Filoni. Filoni reportedly reminded showrunner Leslye Headland that not all witches in Star Wars are Nightsisters. That single clarification reframed the mythology behind the Force-sensitive coven seen in the series. Instead of tying Mother Aniseya’s group directly to established Nightsister lore, the production leaned toward a broader interpretation of Force traditions — expanding the galaxy’s spiritual diversity rather than…
15 Years Ago Today, The Mortis Arc Changed Star Wars Lore Forever
Fifteen years ago today, Star Wars: The Clone Wars aired an arc that felt strange, symbolic, and almost disconnected from the main war narrative. Now? The Mortis arc looks less like a side quest and more like one of the most important mythology pillars in modern Star Wars. Spanning three episodes — Overlords, Altar of Mortis, and Ghosts of Mortis — the story temporarily leaves behind the Clone Wars battlefield and dives headfirst into the cosmic side of the Force. In hindsight, this storyline appears deeply tied to Ahsoka’s larger journey and possibly the spiritual backbone of Dave Filoni’s evolving “Mandoverse.” Star Wars Steps Into Mythology Before Mortis, most Star Wars storytelling treated the Force as mystical but still grounded in Jedi philosophy, Sith ambition, and personal destiny. Mortis changed that perspective. Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka are drawn to a mysterious realm powerful in the Force. There they meet three…
Report: Dave Filoni’s MandoVerse Crossover Movie May Be Reworked Into a Disney+ Series
A new report suggests that the planned Dave Filoni–helmed crossover project set in the so-called MandoVerse may no longer be moving forward as a theatrical film. According to industry scooper DanielRPK, the project is being reworked into a limited series for Disney+ instead of a feature movie. At this stage, the information should be treated as unconfirmed, as Lucasfilm and Disney have not issued any official statement. What Was the MandoVerse Crossover? The project, first announced during Lucasfilm’s broader film slate reveal, was intended to bring together story threads from: Filoni was set to direct the crossover event, which was positioned as a culmination of the interconnected storytelling built across these Disney+ series. Why a Shift to Series Could Make Sense If the report is accurate, moving the project from film to limited series wouldn’t be unprecedented in the modern franchise landscape. The MandoVerse storyline is already structured like long-form…
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. 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: That’s exactly the kind of storytelling DNA you’d want in a Maul-focused series. Maul’s Timing Matters (And…
Everything We Know About Dave Filoni’s “Mandoverse” Crossover Movie (So Far)
Dave Filoni’s Star Wars crossover movie has been talked about for years now — and yet it still feels like the most “Schrödinger’s Star Wars project” imaginable. It exists… but it also kind of doesn’t. It was announced as the cinematic event meant to tie together the Disney+ Star Wars era built around The Mandalorian — and it’s still expected to deliver a large-scale crossover featuring multiple shows. So what do we actually know right now? Let’s break it down into: confirmed, reported, and still speculation. What Is the Filoni Movie Supposed to Be? This is the important baseline: ✅ The film is designed as a crossover event for the interconnected Star Wars Disney+ timeline often nicknamed the “Mandoverse.” That includes the era after Return of the Jedi and before The Force Awakens, where Lucasfilm has built a shared story across multiple series. The original concept has long been described…
Andor Broke the Star Wars Template — and Filoni Wasn’t Involved
Whether you think Andor is the best Star Wars Disney+ series ever made, or just “not your vibe,” one thing is hard to argue: It doesn’t feel like the rest of modern Star Wars. And according to The Wrap, there may be a very specific reason why. In a recent explainer, The Wrap reports that Andor was one of the rare live-action Star Wars projects to have “zero input” from Dave Filoni. That’s not a knock on Filoni. But it is a fascinating insight — because Andor is also one of the rare Star Wars shows that felt like it came from a totally different creative universe. Filoni’s Fingerprints Are Everywhere — Except Here For the last decade, Filoni’s presence inside Star Wars has only grown. If a Star Wars project involves: …there’s usually a Filoni silhouette somewhere behind it. So when you hear that Andor had no Filoni involvement…
Dave Filoni Says He Doesn’t Lead Star Wars With a “Rule Book” — He Wants Artists to Surprise Us
Dave Filoni has become one of the most talked-about names in Star Wars over the past few years — not just as a writer/director, but as someone increasingly seen as the franchise’s creative compass. And according to Filoni himself, that job doesn’t look like what people assume. In a recent quote shared by ScreenRant, Filoni explained that creators sometimes expect to meet him and get handed some kind of canon compliance checklist. But that’s not how he works. “People get worried that they talk to me and I’m gonna have some Star Wars rule book. I know a lot of things about how things have been done, but I’m always curious about… what have you got? What do you want to do?… The biggest thing you want is to get artists to be expressive and express themselves in this time in ways that surprise us. Even if we’re using franchises…
Who Is Lynwen Brennan? The Lucasfilm Co-President Fans Are Suddenly Googling Like Crazy
If you’ve been online in Star Wars fandom lately, you’ve probably noticed the same thing I have: People are not just talking about Dave Filoni anymore. They’re also Googling Lynwen Brennan like she’s a brand new character that just walked into the season finale and changed the whole power balance. And honestly? It makes sense. Because Brennan isn’t just “some executive.” She’s one of the two people now leading Lucasfilm at the very top — and she’s been quietly steering the ship for years. So who is she really? Let’s do a proper portrait: background, career, family (only what’s public), age, and the thing everyone always searches for… net worth. TL;DR (Quick Take) Lynwen Brennan’s Age (Yes, People Keep Asking) Lynwen Brennan was born in June 1967, which makes her 58 years old (as of 2026). And yes — “Lynwen Brennan age” is basically the #1 search query right now….