Let’s face it. Darth Maul was pure Sith genius. The only complaint that I’ve ever heard about him was that he wasn’t in the film long enough. Not to pour salt on that particular wound, but he did have a few some extra scenes in the film that were dropped.
REPORTING TO SIDIOUS
After Darth Maul’s failure on Tatooine, there was supposed to be a short scene where Maul contacts Darth Sidious and explains what happened. The scene was to take place on a Tatooine desert mesa at twilight. It’s not in the Episode I novelization or the Episode I Comic Adaptation, but it did exist at one point in the early drafts of the script. We don’t know if it was actually filmed, but it was included in the shooting schedule, so there’s a good chance.
According to the Episode I Insider’s Guide CD-ROM, the scene entails Maul telling Sidious that the Queen’s ship is enroute to Coruscant, though I’m not sure how he could possibly know that. Maul then asks if he should follow the Queen’s ship, but Darth Sidious tells him to go to Naboo instead and await further orders.
FINISH IT
The Episode I Insider’s Guide CD-ROM was a pretty good source for deleted material. In the early drafts, Naboo was actually called Utapau, which is a name that dates back to the earliest drafts of Episode IV. It was finally used in Episode III. You can head over to the Starkiller site for more information on all that. Here’s a quick mention of Maul and Utapau:
Darth Maul confers with his master after the Queen has left Coruscant in the revised rough draft. Sidious orders Maul to follow the Queen to Utapau and “finish it.” He also warns, “If you can’t destroy the Jedi, avoid them.” The self-confident Maul replies, “I have no doubt now that I am stronger than the Jedi. They will be destroyed.”
MORE MAUL DIALOGUE
Darth Maul didn’t have a lot of dialogue in the finished film, but he originally was supposed to have a bit more lines. These change slightly depending on the source, but the general ideas remain the same. Most of these lines take place on Naboo.
The pictures included from the Episode I Comic Adaptation show Darth Maul speaking his cut lines. The dialogue passages below are from the same scenes in the Episode I Illustrated Screenplay. Look out for additional cut dialogue from Darth Sidious and Battle Droid OOM-9 while you’re reading:
INT. THEED – PALACE – THRONE ROOM – DAY
NUTE, RUNE, DARTH MAUL, OOM-9, and a hologram of DARTH SIDIOUS walk through the throne room.Darth Sidious
…she is more foolish than I thought.Nute
We are sending all available troops to meet this
army of hers assembling near the swamp.
It appears to be made up of primitives.
We do not expect much resistance.OOM-9
I am increasing security at
all Naboo detention camps.Darth Maul
I feel there is more to this, My Master.
The two Jedi may be using the
Queen for their own purposes.Darth Sidious
The Jedi cannot become involved.
They can only protect the Queen.
Even Qui-Gon Jinn will not break that covenant…
This will work to our advantage…Nute
I have your approval to
porceed, then, My Lord.Darth Sidious
Proceed. Wipe them out…
all of them.
…and not much later…
INT. THEED – PALACE – THRONE ROOM – DAY
NUTE, RUNE, and FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS watch the plaza battle on a large viewscreen.Nute
I thought the battle was going to
take place far from here…
this is too close!Rune
What’s going on?Darth Maul enters the throne room.
Darth Maul
I told you there was more to this…
the Jedi are involved.
The solo still of Darth Maul is from the Episode I Insider’s Guide CD-ROM. Compare it to the shot from the Comic Adaptation. It’s almost exact, but in the matching scene from the film he simply says, “Yes, my master,” to Darth Sidious. The shot of Darth Maul and the Neimoidians walking is also taken from the Episode I Insider’s Guide CD-ROM. This scene is in the film, but Darth Sidious was added in later on. This scene looks like another version of the “Wipe them out…” scene. Just imagine a computer generated OOM-9 walking alongside everyone.
THE LIGHTSABER DUEL
A complaint about Episode I that I remember hearing was that there wasn’t any antagonistic dialogue during the lightsaber duels at the end of the film. What made the duels in the original trilogy all the more interesting was this back and forth between the foes. That said, the duel at the end of the film went through many changes.
According to the Episode I Insider’s Guide CD-ROM, after Qui-Gon is killed, Destroyer Droids and Battle Droids enter the battle and start shooting. Darth Maul says to Obi-Wan, “You’re finished, Jedi, and this is the beginning of the end for all Jedi.” Then Obi-Wan leaps backward into the crowd of droids. Before they can do much damage, however, little Anakin (together with Padmé in this version of the script) destroy the control ship, deactivating the droids and sending them running into the walls. Maul starts to cut the droids down to get to Obi-Wan, while Obi-Wan starts using the Force to hurl some battle droids back at Maul. When they get back to each other again, Obi-Wan says, “Your style of fighting is old, but I understand it now…” to which Maul replies, “You learn fast.” Obi-Wan comes back with, “You don’t bother to learn,” but the cocky Maul retorts, “I don’t have to…” At this point, Obi-Wan cuts Maul in half and gives him a posthumous anecdote: “Learn not…live not, my master always says.”
On Starwars.com, Nick Gillard (Stunt Coordinator) talks briefly about the confrontation and how it changed:
“Whenever you see anybody fighting near a big hole, it’s a pretty sure bet someone’s going to go over the edge,” Gillard says. However, originally it wasn’t Obi-Wan who was going to plunge. “It was going to be Qui-Gon going over and hanging, and then coming back and having another fight, and then getting killed. But that seemed unnecessary. What we came up with was just more economical, and I think, really better for the audience.”
Below, you’ll find an image from an unused shot of Obi-Wan doing some sort of acrobatic move during what appears to be the early part of the lightsaber duel. Whether it’s just a still or a cut scene, it’s still nice to see. They colored in the lightsaber but we’re not sure if that was just for the photo or if this is a still from the film.
“One Destiny” TV Spot which contains some alternate dialogue as well.