Following Disney's Investors Day, Lucasfilm made it clear Star Wars isn't slowing down anytime soon, especially on the TV front. One of the key projects revealed was a series focused on Lando Calrissian, although most of the details about the project are being kept under wraps.
However, while fans are wondering if Han Solo or Chewbacca will factor in, the show has a real opportunity to open the door for the return of a fan-favorite villain: Darth Maul.
Maul got a lot of air-time in The Clone Wars and Rebels, making up for his brief stint in The Phantom Menace. He was brought back from the dead to wage war against the Jedi while seeking to unlock the full powers of the Dark Side against the traitorous Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader. Fans would eventually see him also taking on the likes of Ahsoka and Ezra Bridger, all before he'd fight Ben Kenobi for the final time and perish.
Just before that, though, there's a chunk of his life where he led the Crimson Dawn crime syndicate that's more or less an open canvas. Solo teased this when Qi'ra was contacted by Maul, who now wanted to work closely with her, giving her Dryden Vos' position after the crime boss' death. However, due to poor box office performance and critical reception, the sequel didn't pan out and this thread has been left unresolved.
This is the ideal story for Lando to explore, capitalizing on Donald Glover's popularity, especially with comic book geeks and music fans. After all, he was probably the best part of the movie, coming off as a very believable Billy Dee Williams in his younger days. The series can act as a soft sequel to Solo, spinning Lando off into his own pocket of pirates, smugglers and gangsters. He's already a known criminal by this point and Crimson Dawn would have him listed as an enemy after he worked with Han, so they can easily start hunting him down.
Lando can even have Alden Ehrenreich returning as Han, which would give him and Chewie a chance to man the Millennium Falcon once again and finish what they started with Qi'ra. This would patch the gap in history quite well, and it also gives Lando a fresh dynamic as the focus of the series. Usually, he's portrayed as this swindling dashing debonair who cares only about himself, but this can break from that and show fans how his inner-rebel started.
The show needs someone intimidating as his foil to Lando, and who better than a former Sith Lord. This story would help shape Maul as a leader for his Malachor arcs, and ultimately, it would be a battle of brains and brawn. By focusing on something other than comedy for Lando, Lucasfilm can break the predictable mold and craft something more action-oriented and gritty, allowing the titular character to take on an opponent no one believes he could top.