Maul is introduced as a Zabrak from Dathomir and a powerful Sith Lord, having been trained in the ways of the dark side of the Force as Darth Sidious' first apprentice.

Once his mind and body are restored with magick and cybernetics by the Nightsister Mother Talzin, Maul becomes an independent criminal mastermind and endures as Obi-Wan's archenemy.

He renounces his Sith title of "Darth", rebuilds his criminal organization, and manipulates Ezra Bridger into helping him find Obi-Wan on Tatooine, where the two old rivals have a final confrontation that ends in Maul’s death.

Maul has also appeared in various forms of media in the Star Wars Expanded Universe, including novels, comic books, and video games.

Despite his limited screen time in The Phantom Menace as well as the film's mixed reception, Maul has become a fan favorite in the franchise and a widely recognised villain in popular culture for his intimidating appearance and double-bladed lightsaber.

After getting frustrated with a drawing by The Phantom Menace production designer Gavin Bocquet, concept artist Iain McCaig started covering it in tape.

[4] His clothing was also modified, from a tight body suit with a muscle pattern to the Sith robe based on samurai pleats, because the lightsaber battles involved much jumping, spinning, running, and rolling.

[9][10] Gregg Berger, Clint Bajakian, Jess Harnell, Stephen Stanton, and Lee Tockar have also voiced him in other appearances in less prominent capacities.

[11] In Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, the prop for his lightsaber was made of resin, cast over a metal rod to which the two blades were attached.

Maul manages to track her starship to Tatooine, where he briefly engages Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson), who has been assigned to protect the Queen.

[19] Savage brings Maul back to Dathomir, where Talzin uses Nightsister magick to restore his mind and outfit him with a pair of cybernetic legs.

Maul joins forces with their leader, Pre Vizsla, to take control of Mandalore and exact revenge against their common enemy, Obi-Wan.

Maul engineers Vizsla's rise to power by ordering the crime families to attack Mandalore, allowing the Death Watch to capture them and gain the public's support.

Maul overpowers Vizsla, beheading him with his own darksaber, and effectively takes over Mandalore, putting disgraced former Prime Minister Almec, whom Satine had imprisoned for corruption, in power as a puppet leader.

Meanwhile, Darth Sidious learns of Maul's survival and the power he has accumulated, and, fearing that his former apprentice may challenge him, travels to Mandalore to address the matter.

During the Siege of Mandalore story arc (which is set during Revenge of the Sith), Bo-Katan's Death Watch faction and a branch of the 501st Clone Legion, led by Ahsoka Tano and Commander Rex, lead an assault on Maul's Mandalorian forces to draw him out of hiding.

While confronting Ahsoka, Maul shares his visions with her, revealing that Darth Sidious will destroy both the Republic and the Jedi Order, and invites her to join him so that they may stand a chance to stop him.

Tracked by an Imperial Inquisitor called the Eighth Brother, Maul is stranded on the ancient Sith world of Malachor, where he is discovered among the ruins by series protagonist Ezra Bridger.

However, in return for the provided answers, the Nightsister spirits demand a sacrifice, and possess Kanan and Sabine Wren when they arrive to rescue Ezra.

Eventually, in the "Twin Suns" episode, Maul tracks down Obi-Wan to Tatooine, but gets lost in the desert, and decides to use Ezra to lure his old nemesis out of hiding.

The main plot follows Maul's quest to kill his first Jedi, allying himself with several bounty hunters and facing a crime lord along the way.

Dark Horse Comics produced Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir based on the scripts and storyboards of an unproduced four-episode story arc intended for the seventh season of The Clone Wars.

After defeating Maul and killing his brother Savage Opress, Sidious takes him to a Separatist prison, where Count Dooku tortures him for information about the Shadow Collective.

One story, "Old Wounds", depicts Maul with longer horns on his head, having survived his bisection at Obi-Wan's hands, with his missing bottom half replaced with cybernetic legs, similar to those of General Grievous (and his eventual revival in The Clone Wars).

Set around the various episodes of The Clone Wars that featured Maul, the two books detail his and Savage Opress' journey across the galaxy as they seek vengeance on the Jedi.

Maul completes this task, but learns that the traitor had recorded proof of the Sith's manipulation of the Naboo blockade on a holocron to sell for profit.

A suicidal attack by a Trade Federation-hired bounty hunter interferes with Maul's plan and the holocron is purchased by a Corellian con man named Lorn Pavan.

There, an insidious gambling empire pits the galaxy's most terrible criminals against each other in gladiatorial combat, and Maul must face Jabba the Hutt and various other horrifying obstacles to complete his mission.

Whilst the movie received a mixed reaction from fans and critics alike, the character was one of the most highly praised parts of the film, despite his limited screen time.

"[34] Maul-related merchandise was popular among Hasbro Star Wars toy lines, with plastic recreations of his double bladed lightsaber and various action figures in his likeness developed.