I remember him telling another story about having to go to the Phantom Menace premier on his own dime. Lucasfilm have really treated him like shit over the years.
I love Sam Witwer's Maul and totally lost my shit when his voice came out of Ray Park but man I didn't even think about Serafinowicz losing the role. Feels bad man.
Exactly! All the people here saying Witwer was the right choice are missing the point. He may very well have been (I haven’t watched any of the animated shows), but at least give Peter a courtesy call.
So I absolutely LOVE Sam as the voice of Maul but Peter's voice is just so much more menacing. He could be the voice of the devil. Silky, smooth, and menacing. But that's just me
That's incredibly ironic. The same shit was pulled on David Prowse, the man who physically played Vader, when the first film premiered. Prowse had taken his family to see it and didn't know they had replaced his voice with James Earl Jones's until they all saw it on the big screen. I personally am a big fan of Witwer and his Maul, but it seems some things just don't change.
Let's be honest though - if he genuinely thought the intimidating villain was ever going to have a west country accent, he was a bit of a fool. I suspect they were rather perplexed by the very notion that he ever thought his voice would be used.
@@NicholasBrakespear If you listen to his line readings in making of footage his voice and delivery is pant wettingly hilarious! His acting's on the level of a School Pantomime villain and his voice is all mopey sounding. There's no menace at all. The crew were laughing at what a shit film Star Wars appeared to be, partly because of Prowse's voice and acting as the villain.
As much as we all love Sam’s work as Maul over the years, Sam is really just doing an impersonation of Peter. Since he originated the role I think he should have been the one to voice him in Solo.
Nah sam def has his own version to it now like at first it was def just an impression but with how much sam has done with the character vs how much oeter got to do with the character at least in terms of personality and where they were at by solo that is sams character
Holy shit! They actually asked Peter back to play Maul again? Then, they cut him out. Hell, if Mr. Serafinowicz could have played Maul on The Clone Wars AND Rebels, THAT would have been PERFECT...all due respect to Sam Witwer
@@babu4028 Actually, Peter had more, it's just that George Lucas cut the rest of them. And, just how bad ass is that line (STILL), "At last, we will reveal ourselves to the Jedi...at last, we will have revenge..." The soliloquy he delivered that was used on The Phantom Menace soundtrack (and single): "Fear...fear attracts the fearful...fear is my ally..." He would have totally killed playing Maul from The Clone Wars all the way to Solo, and then Rebels....all due respect to Sam. Both are great Mauls.
@@Darthpsychonis Also, the fact that Peter wasn't even invited to the premiere of TPM in 1999 didn't help his view of the film. Similar to Terence Stamp's experience filming TPM, where he didn't shoot any scenes w/ any of the actors he was addressing in the movie. George sometimes had no clue about how to direct living actors...Natalie Portman made a point of that in describing how much better Kenneth Branaugh was at giving direction to actor's in an epic, Special FX-laden film.
Witwer was the right Choice to be honest. He even pointed out the lightsaber thing so I think his presence certainly helped with the brilliance of the scene.
LaRone CT-HK47 Yeah so pleased Sam pointed that lightsabre continuity out - kinda worries me that Lucas film didn’t already have someone there to do that 😧 But for me Peter is Darth Maul’s voice because I never really watched Clone Wars and I had the Darth Maul toy as a kid and it came with a chip so it would talk which I heard about a million times ‘At last we will have revenge’ 😈 The most important thing tho was Ray coming back because he is AMAZING - I’ve met him too and he was sooo nice & respectful - great guy. Now we need an Obi-Wan film with Maul & Vader as the villains!
@@MerlinsBeard yeah I get where you're coming from, Maul is my favorite character in all of Star Wars and that's primarily because of what Filoni does with him in Clone Wars and because of that I gravitate more towards Witwer's performance but both him and Peter are fantastic and not too dissimilar. Really happy that they got Ray back as well. Holding out for that Kenobi film, it's the thing I want most in the world (that and Clone Wars season 7 and for Iron Man to live through Endgame so he can get a 4th installment and go out Logan style) :)
Owen Chou Hello, I’m Ron Howard, and this is my Masterclass. *Lesson 1:* If you need to replace an actor, make sure you tell them at the last possible minute to avoid confrontation…
"Continuity reasons"? Bro, when did Matt Lanter ever sound like Hayden Christensen? Live-action and animated shows can have different actors. It's fine...
They had all the details of the character wrong, and Sam Witwer corrected them on what lightsaber he is supposed to have during the movie, as well as gave suggestions on how Maul would interact with Keira, which all made it into the movie. Sam knows the character.
It’s stupid because Sam was pushing so hard to try to snag the role over Pete in a article he did, which he successfully did, part of the reason that he be a better choice of how fan will interact with it and continuity sake,Sam was kinda a douchebag about it too.
@@shaggymofo7716 Sam is ALWAYS a douchebag about everything. The second he opens his mouth, everything about him screams douchebag. He seems absolutely insufferable.
I love Peter Serafinowicz but he has shat on his experience on the Phantom Menace in so many interviews that I can imagine Lucasfilm suddenly realising then saying “replace that mofo!”
He "shat on" - as you so eloquently put it - a 20-year-old and arguably bad movie, but the production company only realised it AFTER they rehired him and he actually finished reprising his role decades later? Wow, these folks work fast...
No hate on Witwer the dude blows it out of the park with Maul... But the way Peter delivered the only two lines Maul has in the Phantom Menace is ingrained in my memory. At last we will reveal ourselves to the Jedi. At last we will have revenge.
It’s hilarious how Witwer’s impression sounds definitive until you hear Pete talking. Man’s got dulcet black velvet pipes that no cost-friendly VO can come close to.
Witwer was the right Choice to be honest. He even pointed out the lightsaber thing so I think his presence certainly helped with the brilliance of the scene.
How? He's impersonating Peter and Peter is the live action voice... It makes no sense. Plus, they should have decided that before asking Peter to record.
It's interesting how no one even mentions Ray Park. For a character who was ostensibly silent for most of the film I would argue that Park was more integral to the portrayal of Darth Maul than Peter who just did the voice, all 31 words. The lightsaber fight at the end is always referred to when people talk about Maul in Phantom Menace and that was all Ray Park.
You mean how they didn't mention that Ray Park was smuggled into Pinewood the day after the audio was recorded in a blacked out limo and his scenes were shot in a sectioned off part of the studio? I can't believe they didn't mention that.
@@poposterous236 You must have not seen The Clone Wars show, or else your statement would be different. If you were only talking about TPM though, I'd agree.
Peter is the live action version of Maul, so continuity-wise, it would have made more sense to keep him. Also, Sam is just doing an impersonation of Peter's Maul, so why not just keep the original? But Hell, I can't tell the difference between their performances anyway.
Peter originated the voice, so any performance afterwards is an impersonation. Sure, they all add their own spin on it, but it's all inspired by the original. Same goes for anyone who voices Vader, Yoda, The Emperor, etc.
How is it an impersonation if he had like 30 seconds of voice time in phantom menace? It's not like he was doing it for years,he had like 20 seconds of voice lines
Listen, I understand Peter was screwed over a tad. But the thing about maul that sells maul is ray park. His physical presence is what maul is. The voice has been Sam Witter for literally over a decade and it fits better in my opinion and I get that Peter came first but this isn't dibs here, this is about who made more of an impact. A guy who said 31 words or the guy who played him in multiple episodes of multiple seasons on two different shows and video games, the answer is very simple there
@@casna5400 More than the actual voice from the movie? Especially after you had the original voice already recorded? Come on that's ridiculously unnecessarily.
I mean it's the same world where legions of star wars fans have accepted Hayden Christensens random insertion at the end of the return of the Jedi 🤷🏻♂️
blindjustice But Sam Witwer had much more screen time when he was playing Maul than Peter did. Sam really built on what little character TPM provided for Maul. At this point, I think of Sam when I see Maul in any shape or form. He IS Maul.
@@TonyCT7567 But he wasn't in the original movie. If they hadn't literally already recorded I could see why. That's just disrespectful to do to the original voice actor.
@@marcolara5433 I don't think you understand, Ray Park and Peter were BOTH the original Maul in Phantom Menace, one was the physical actor, and Peter was the voice. Both worked on the movie together. Both are Maul and both are amazing.
"Hey we know you voiced the character originally and just recorded your lines, but we're going to bring in a guy who does a really good impression of you instead."
He did 2 lines in a movie, Witwer played him in a lot of episodes in 2 tv shows, not doing an impersonation. The only shitty thing was not telling Peter Serafinowicz about it till after the premiere, because Witwer deserves to be the voice, he's the one who gave him a personality besides looking cool.
Edhelvar You idiot... before Peter’s version of Darth Maul there was nothing. No one else to go off of. His voice brought the character to life. Any one after him is doing their best to imitate how he sounded in Episode I. The same thing goes for Darth Vader and James Earl Jones. After the original, everything else is an imitation. That’s how it works.
Peter is wonderful, and his vocal portrayal of Maul in Episode One is Awesome. But Witwer arguably cares much more about the character and put A LOT of time and and effort into molding him into what he was in The Clone Wars.
I started watching The Gentlemen tonight. Great show. Watching some RU-vid before bed and holy shit the actor from The Gentlemen is the voice of Maul from Phantom Menace?? This is such a surreal moment for me 😂
Continuity excuse in my opinion is bullshit, tv shows are known for generally not using the same cast for voice work because of budget or whatever. For me it would be more continuous for Peter to voice maul as that is what was heard in the film. I don’t mind Sam but I personally think peter would have been better
Imo, Peter had so few lines in TPM that you don't get familiar with it. Sam manages to build his character while sounding simular to the little Peter brought in TPM that the continuity argument doesn't really make much sense as there is little established voice in the movie from Peter, but much from Sam, with a large fanbase
No disrespect to Peter Serafinowicz but Sam Witwer is Maul, he has provided so much depth to the character over the course of Clone Wars and Rebels. He was the right choice.
I would’ve liked to hear him in the movie. As much as I love Sam Witwer’s work in Star Wars this guy deserved another chance to play Maul. This just kinds adds another point to the cartoons corrupting the live action stuff though. It’s a good thing I don’t watch anything new they put out anymore
His voice sounded so much better for Darth Maul in phantom menace. They should of kept him.. he had a deep soft spoken tone. Sounded more like the character. All I hear is star killer from the other guy.. sounds 2 vibrant and young... not menacing.
He has a great voice and his darth maul voice over was spot on shame they cut out scenes should of left it in ,got to love how Kathleen Kennedy runs Lucas film ,solo wasn't a bad film she cut out so many scenes and she was a dictator too ,
He does have an incredible voice, you can definitely hear the inspiration behind Sam's impression. Admittedly, Sam's voice is absolutely synonymous with Darth Maul, but MAN, Peter sounds awesome.
Sam’s performance is a bit too cartoony sounding for me. Still a good actor, some amazing moments in Rebels. Whereas Peter’s natural speaking voice is so close to Maul’s it sounds much more natural. Would have loved for him to return.
It's a shame, Sam Witwer has of course had far more lines as Maul, but Peter's voice was great in The Phantom Menace even though he only had like one line. Pretty shit that they didn't tell him til after the premiere.
@@HRHooChicken I’ve watched it now. Just finished season 4. It’s got some pretty great stuff in it. I find it doesn’t get really good though until like halfway through season 3.
@@HRHooChicken It kind of is a bit kiddy. That’s the one of the things I don’t love about it. But it does get better over time. I’m definitely more into Star Wars when it’s live-action though. Although I do love Lego Star Wars because that’s what got me more into Star Wars in the first place so it holds a special place in my heart and I find it hilarious.
Firing Lord and Miller was the right decision though. They signed on agreeing to do one type of movie, then decided to hijack it on their own to make a farce that was turning out terrible. So yeah, we wouldn't have gotten a great movie if they just let Lord and Miller improvise a bunch of terrible changes. They completely backstabbed Lucasfilm.
As a friend to Ray, I would like for them to ask him who his Maul voice would be. That'll never happen of course. My husband did security for Sam and did not like him at all. We went to SW Celebration in Orlando and stayed in the green room and I got to see for myself what a suck up Sam is along with a couple others.I had no desire to meet him.
I know this is gonna be an unpopular comment, but I’m bummed out this guy didn’t get the voice role. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad Sam was there to fill them in on the small canon details, and I think he should have a role in Star Wars, but his voice kind of stood out to me in a negative way in Solo. Maybe it’s just me but I find the character of Maul in the animated show to be so different than the maul in TPM.
I had no idea about any of this. It makes sense for continuity but I still would have preferred to hear his voice as Maul. Oh well, We can see Darth Maul and Star Lord hang out in Parks and Rec.
To people saying that Peter should sing nothing but praises of Lucasfilm, I don't see how he even considered recording for them after how they treated him, only to be disrespected again. And he doesn't seem angry. I would have been pissed. You all would.
I mean I get why they didn’t because although Ray played him it’s Sam Witwer who’s played Maul since the Clones Wars show and he’s become arguably more synonymous with the character along with Park plus peter hasn’t really been positive towards the phantom menace and Maul himself in previous interviews so it makes sense that Lucasfilm brought Sam back
Peter is a lovely guy. Met him at one of the last LFCC in 2019. Very cool. Shame he got the shaft on this one. I dont think it mattered at all who did the voice and he is the cinematic Maul !!!
Look people, Peter Serafinowicz has a great voice and set a great base for Maul. But he never made Maul a character in his own right. He barely gave anything at all--not through any fault of his own. Sam Witwer turned a concept into a character; he made Maul who he is and gave him a personality and an actual voice. I can tell the difference between Peter's Maul and Sam's Maul. Peter is subdued, Sam understands Maul's psyche and character, he gives Maul emotion in his performance; he is legitimate.
I actually prefer Peter’s voice for maul, as much as I love Sam. There’s just something so unsettling in Peter’s otherwise calm and collected voice for the character that adds a certain level of depth, whereas I feel Sam tries a bit too hard to make the character sound deranged.
Maybe Sam tries to make the character sound deranged because he is? I mean, he did fall down a giant hole after being cut in half, he was half spider for 10 years, and he's basically fuelled purely by his hatred for Obi-Wan and nothing else
Funny how I got an ad for Ron Howard's masterclass before and after the video!! Difficult situation tho.. I think it makes sense using Sam continuity wise but it's pretty fucked up how they didn't tell anything to Peter about it, I would've at least gave him a thanks or a cameo.
The trouble is, the Clone Wars and Rebels TV series had Sam Witwer as Maul's voice, and they both take place after TPM, so that was really the original switch they made voiceover wise. If they had switched back to Peter, the voice for Maul in the SW universe chronologically would have went from Peter in TPM, to Sam in Clone Wars, back to Peter in Solo, and then again to Sam in Rebels. Plus Sam had way more lines throughout the Clone Wars and Rebels series than Peter did in just one movie. You can understand then why they kept Sam as Maul's voice since that's what they had been using after TPM.
He got David Prowsed and Jason Wingreened at the same time. Prowse didn't know he about James Earl Jones voice over until the premier and Jason Wingreens Boba Fett lines were replaced with Tem Morrisons voice for continuity. And this continuity reason is the opposite of Tem, because he is still the clones in live action while Dee Bradley Baker voices them in animation.
Yeah it sucks that even after all these years it sucks that it’s still happening even under different people. Though I admit I like the current Boba Fett voice because I’m a fan of Morrison’s in Star Wars.
I think Sam Witwer was the right call (Peter has like 2 lines in the entire Phantom Menace while Sam's been voicing Maul for years) but this was a terrible way for them to handle it. They should have told him the moment they brought Sam on to do the lines.
I'd love to have that scene as like a alternative take or something on Disney+ be a nice special feature. Assuming the scene is the exact same as the witwer scene was.
There’s one thing to use the CW VA which does make sense since he’s the most recent and more heard voice. But then you bring him in to do the lines, too just to not use them. You give him fake hope. But you don’t even tell him until after the movie has been seen. It’s not because of secrecy because he already knew Maul was going to be in it. So mean of them to do that to him.
Sam Witwer and Peter Serafinowicz's voices are very close and similar, but Peter's voice has a more mysterious and sinister edge vs Sam who has a slight Shakspeariean twist to it. I think they should have Kept Peter's voice