Darth Maul Voice Actor Slams Star Wars: The Phantom Menace as 'The Biggest Disappointment of My Life' and Says His Pay Was 'S***'

Peter Serafinowicz, the dependable of Darth Maul successful Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, has branded George Lucas' divisive archetypal prequel movie arsenic "the biggest disappointment" of his life.

Speaking via the Class Clown podcast, Serafinowicz began by explaining however overmuch of a Star Wars instrumentality helium had been arsenic a child, erstwhile helium went done a signifier wherever helium watched A New Hope each day. The histrion people past leapt astatine the accidental of voicing Maul successful Lucas' 1999 prequel — though was near disappointed by the extremity result, arsenic good arsenic however overmuch helium had been paid.

Serafinowicz, champion known for his roles successful British drama bid Spaced, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, and the caller How to Train Your Dragon remake, said helium remembered being compared to the precocious James Earl Jones erstwhile told helium would beryllium dubbing implicit the lines of Maul histrion Ray Park.

"James Earl Jones has got the champion dependable of immoderate quality ever, right?" Serafinowicz said. "Then, abruptly determination I was with George Lucas, and helium was similar saying, 'Well, Peter, you're the caller James Earl Jones,' and I was like, 'F***ing hell, americium I? Then wherefore are you paying maine specified s*** money, George?'

"It was weird due to the fact that this quality Darth Maul... I don't cognize what I thought of this guy," Serafinowicz continued. "The plan of it was... I wasn't that into it. When I saw the movie I thought it was the biggest disappointment of my beingness astatine that point, watching that film. It truly was. Have you seen it?"

Opinion connected the Star Wars prequels has shifted implicit time, though upon merchandise the films received important pushback from older fans. Now, however, a younger procreation has grown up with the trilogy and look upon it much fondly — to the grade that BB-8's puppeteer precocious said helium expects a aboriginal procreation to yet bash the aforesaid with Disney's sequels.

"At that clip it was truthful breathtaking that adjacent being successful it... doing this thing, what I thought would beryllium this iconic thing, it was conscionable unimaginable," Serafinowicz concluded. "It is simply a weird thing. He lone says astir 20 words successful the film. I'm delighted I've done it but it's a truly weird happening to beryllium associated with."

Maul features successful conscionable 1 section of the Star Wars prequels, with acold little screentime than Darth Vader successful the archetypal movies. The quality was brought backmost for the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated bid and besides precocious received his ain spinoff bid Maul: Shadow Lord, though Serafinowicz has not returned to dependable the quality again.

Image credit: Antony Dickson/South China Morning Post via Getty Images

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social