One of the most mysterious characters in the Star Wars saga who has recently returned to the spotlight is Darth Maul, the Sith Apprentice who debuted in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.

Unfortunately, his character was underwhelming in The Phantom Menace to say the least, leaving fans who were expecting him to be the next Darth Vader fairly disappointed. Fortunately, Maul returned later in the franchise in The Clone Wars, Rebels, and most recently, in Solo: A Star Wars Story.

The return of Darth Maul gave many fans of the Sith character a second chance to understand more about his motivations, his powers, and his species. As it turns out, there is a lot more to Maul than most fans realized, and he ended up having a lot of development throughout the two Star Wars TV series.

During the time between The Phantom Menace and A New Hope, Maul accomplished quite a bit, from becoming the greatest crime lord in the galaxy to training his brother as his apprentice in the ways of the Force, and even to taking out the secret lover of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

During this time, more was learned about Darth Maul than ever before. Maul was revealed to be stronger, both physically and with the Force, than most people had assumed.

With that in mind, here are the 15 Crazy Facts About Darth Maul's Body.

He Has Two Hearts

Darth Maul is part of the Zabrak species, which may have humanoid features, but are still quite different from humans in numerous ways. One obvious difference is the horns that their species all have atop their heads, but on the inside, there is a unique feature that very few other Star Wars species have.

Shockingly, Darth Maul and the rest of the Zabrak species each have two hearts in their bodies. While this may seem excessive, they would work like human kidneys.

If one stops working, the other would keep pumping blood in its place, practically giving them an extra life.

(This extra life is metaphorically speaking, of course, and not actually how Maul survived the events of The Phantom Menace.)

Believe it or not, Zabraks are not the only species in the Star Wars lore to have two hearts. Cereans, which are also humanoid in nature, have two hearts as well. The most well known Cerean is the Jedi Ki-Adi-Mundi, who appeared in each of the Star Wars prequels.

While Darth Maul's dual hearts never really played a part in his journey, it's still a fun bit of lore for his species. It's ironic, though, that the character with the most hearts is one of the franchise's most heartless characters.

He Was Almost A Woman With Long Hair

Understandably, when deciding upon a new villain to introduce in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, George Lucas oversaw a number of potential character designs for Darth Maul.

One character design early on in the process actually depicted Darth Maul as a female Sith, who was completely different in appearance.

Unlike the Darth Maul we know and love, this early concept featured the Sith Apprentice with pale blue skin, with no red or black markings anywhere on her face.

However, the red and black color designs were still prevalent. Her hair was long, greasy and red, covering a good portion of her face, and the black color design was apparent in her costume and in her eye shadow.

George Lucas ultimately decided to scrap this early design for Darth Maul because the character was too terrifying. This Sith didn't look like anything you would expect to see in a space opera series such as Star Wars, and instead looked more like something straight out of horror movie.

While it's disappointing that the live action Star Wars movies never gave us a female Sith, we should all be counting our blessings that this version of Darth Maul never graced the screen.

The first version of the villain is truly the stuff of nightmares.

His Robotic Legs Can Be Hacked

After his defeat on Naboo, Darth Maul essentially became half Zabrak and half robot. While his top half was still the Darth Maul from The Phantom Menace, his bottom half was made from droid parts, much like Darth Vader, who lost the last of his human limbs at the end of Revenge of the Sith.

Because his legs are made from droid parts, it actually means that they are able to be hacked.

While this was just a hypothetical idea for years, the third season of Star Wars: Rebels actually proved this theory to be completely possible when the team of Rebels attempted to hack Maul's legs after he was causing quite a bit of mischief for the team of heroes.

While the rebels were not entirely successful in their attempt to hack his legs, their attempt did prove that hacking his legs was certainly possible. With the right hacker, the team of rebels could have taken complete control of the bottom half of Maul's body.

In theory, had D.J. from Star Wars: The Last Jedi been given the opportunity, he ultimately should have been able to achieve this technological task.

Unfortunately, we never actually saw anyone take control of Maul's legs in either of the series, but there is a chance we will see this play out in a future Star Wars spin-off movie.

He Was Stronger And More Skilled Than Both Jedi On Naboo

One of the most disappointing parts of Darth Maul's character for a number of Star Wars fans was his defeat at the end of The Phantom Menace at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Many people anticipated Maul to be the next Darth Vader, and were thus upset when he was sliced in two by a Jedi Apprentice.

However, his defeat on Naboo was not caused by his lack of skill or strength. Instead, it was caused by his overconfidence.

The Naboo fight proved that Maul was able to physically defeat both Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi, ending the life of the former, and disarming the latter. In a fight of strength and skill, Maul won.

The defeat of Maul actually came from his over-confidence, which is one of his greatest character flaws. Maul went on to show his over confidence in the Clone Wars series, proving that he had not learned his lesson.

However, had Maul been a bit less arrogant during the Battle of Naboo, there's no question that he would have walked out fine, while both Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon would not be able to tell the tale.

As time progressed, Obi-Wan eventually became a much more skilled fighter than Maul.

During Star Wars: Clone Wars, Maul and Obi-Wan faced off a few times, with each fight ending in a stalemate. However, Obi-Wan ultimately proved himself the greater fighter in Star Wars: Rebels when he brought an end to Maul's life on Tatooine.

He's Carnivorous

Another interesting secret about the Zabrak species is that they are all carnivorous. As opposed to omnivores, Darth Maul's species will only eat meat, no vegetables or plants included.

Presumably, this restrictive diet is intended to make them even stronger, in addition to adding to their lust for blood and violence.

The Zabrak species, particularly the Dathomirian tribe that Maul came from, holds a lot of honor in strength and violence, so the fact that their species is carnivorous makes a lot of sense.

In many early human cultures, societal positions of leadership and nobility were given to the greatest hunters, primarily due to their ability to capture food and protect their people.

However, most humans are not as barbaric as the Zabraks, who are depicted as being more vicious, so it would make sense that the alien species was taken up a notch by making them completely carnivorous.

Rather than having other people in their society who would grow crops as farmers, a majority of Zabrak culture is depicted in the franchise as barbaric warriors who fight to survive and only dine on other creatures.

Their kind are often merciless, which would explain why so many of them went on to become villains in the franchise.

His Body Was Healed With Magic

After the events of The Phantom Menace, Darth Maul's days in the galaxy seemed to be up. However, he still managed to return, both in The Clone Wars and in Solo: A Star Wars Story, leaving a number of Star Wars fans scratching their heads, wondering how it was that he managed to survive being chopped in half.

As The Clone Wars revealed, Maul spent the first ten years after the Battle of Naboo on the junk planet of Lotho Minor.

During his fall after being split in two, Maul used the Force to pull himself into an air vent, which led him into a trash compactor, which in turn, eventually led him to being tossed into the wastelands of Lotho Minor.

While he did survive the fight, his body and mind deteriorated over time, leaving him completely weak and vulnerable. His strength was gone, his memory had faded over the 10 year period of time, and his life was seemingly coming to an end.

Fortunately for the former Sith Apprentice, Maul was rescued by his brother Savage Opress and taken to his mother, the Dathomirian witch Mother Talzin.

Talzin used her magic to rebuild Maul's muscles and bring back his former mental state, allowing him to remember his life before the Battle of Naboo.

He Briefly Had Mechanical Spider Legs

When Savage Opress found Maul on Lotho Minor, the former Sith Apprentice wasn't just weak and powerless-- the bottom of his body closely resembled a giant spider.

The actual details and abilities of the spider legs were never explained, but they seemed to mysteriously take control of Maul.

The legs were crudely pieced together, possibly by some sort of magic, and were made entirely from the scraps of the junk planet. He actually had six legs in this form, and his two arms brought his limb count to a total of eight.

His appearance was completely fearsome, and Maul's unstable mental state made him even more terrifying.

It's actually quite unclear if the legs themselves were what drove Maul into insanity, or how the even legs came to be.

When Savage Opress found him, Maul was also seemingly under the control of an Anacondan known as Morley, who may have played some part in creating the spider legs.

While Morley wasn't necessarily mind controlling Maul, he did treat him like a mindless monster, which didn't help Maul's confused mental state.

While his spider legs were truly fearsome and clearly not the best fit for Maul, it was disappointing that they did not stick around too long. As soon as Maul was rescued, these legs were replaced, bringing him back to his usual two-legged form that most Star Wars fans are used to.

His Facial Design Is A Tattoo

One of the most distinguishing aspects of Darth Maul's appearance is his skin pattern, which features an intricate red and black design covering all of his skin, including his face, chest, and almost every other part of his body.

His brother Savage Opress also has a similar skin design, except his design is yellow and black.  Surprisingly, Zabraks are not born with these designs. Instead, the designs are tattooed onto them.

According to Zabrak culture, tattoos covering the skin are a symbol of honor and strength.

They make them look more intimidating, which is a major part of how their society operates. Their tattoos are traditionally black, meaning that Maul's natural skin color as a child was red.

Maul personally received his first tattoos before his first birthday. His mother was a prominent member of their Dathomirian tribe, becoming the first apprentice to Darth Sidious. Because of this, Maul received his tattoos at an early age out of respect for his family.

Not all Zabraks receive tattoos, however. Asajj Ventress, the villain of the Clone Wars movie and recurring villain in the Clone Wars series, was also a Dathomirian Zabrak like Maul. However, she never received any tattoos, leaving her appearance rather different from Maul's.

He Wears A Small Earring In His Upper Ear

One small detail about Darth Maul that is easy to overlook is that he has a small earring on his left ear. On the upper part of his ear is a small, pearl-like earring that ever so slightly adds to the menacing effect of his overall appearance.

However, the origins of this earring do not lie in Star Wars lore, but rather in the behind-the-scenes creation of Darth Maul himself.

The story behind Maul's pearl earring is actually due to a costuming error on the set of The Phantom Menace. After being fully costumed and having all of his makeup put on, Darth Maul's actor Ray Park realized that he had forgotten to take off the earring in his upper left ear.

However, rather than taking the earring out and redoing the make-up on that part of his ear, George Lucas decided that they should keep the earring.

It added a nice touch to Maul's character, so there was really no point in taking extra time to remove it.

During Maul's later appearances in The Clone Wars and Rebels, his earring still remained in his upper left ear. It was a small detail that the animators did not need to include, but in order to stay true to his character, they deemed it necessary.

His Horns Grew As He Aged

Outside of the tattooed design on his skin, one of the most recognizable parts of Darth Maul's outward appearance is the set of horns atop his head. These horns actually grow Zabraks as they age, typically starting during their pubescent years.

Like the tattoos on their faces, the horns are a symbol of honor and strength for the Zabrak species, showing that they have finally become true warriors in their culture.

Not all Zabraks actually grow these horns, however, and while most Zabraks that do grow horns have them grow around their entire head, some only grow horns on their forehead.

As it turns out, these horns do a bit more than just show honor and strength in Zabrak society. As Star Wars: The Clone Wars revealed, Zabrak horns can actually be used to impale enemies.

Darth Maul's brother, Savage Opress, once used his horns to defeat a Jedi Apprentice that was accompanying Obi-Wan Kenobi on the planet Florrum.

Darth Maul personally holds a bit of respect for his own horns, as revealed in The Clone Wars series. During the brief period of time when Maul ruled over the planet Mandalore, some of the soldiers of the planet whose armor closely resembles that of Boba Fett became designed after Darth Maul, including a red and black color scheme with horns protruding from their helmets.

It was a small detail that showed that Maul carried this part of his culture into his criminal actions.

Ray Park Trained Mercilessly To Match Maul's Level Of Acrobatics

Surprisingly, Ray Park's portrayal of Darth Maul in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace was one of his first movie roles. Up until then, Park was merely known as a martial artist, so The Phantom Menace became his big leap into the movie industry.

While Park was already fantastic as a martial artist and fighter, he wanted to take things up a notch to prepare for his Sith role.

Not only did Park end up training in a number of martial arts and acrobatic styles that he had not trained in before, but he also trained quite a bit in ballet, which helped to make his abilities seem more graceful and Force-based.

“The moves that Maul does are unique to the film but are similar to Wushu," Park said about the moves, and how it affected his career as a martial artist. "I used to compete with Great Britain in their Wushu team. I was 22 when I played Maul. Afterward, I feared that playing a villain would scare off my pupils, but it didn’t. People seemed to like the bad guys."

Since the release of The Phantom Menace, Park never stopped his martial arts training. When he was called on to reprise his role in Solo: A Star Wars Story, not only was he prepared, but he was also significantly stronger.

His Tattoos Are Based On Facial Muscle Patterns

Darth Maul underwent a number of different designs during the development stages of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, but it's safe to say that the way his appearance turned out was possibly the best decision made in the entire movie.

Interestingly enough, the intricate design on Darth Maul's face isn't just some random selection of lines. Instead, his tattoos are based on his muscle patterns underneath his skin.

This clever design helps to make Maul look absolutely terrifying, while still being realistic and settling to the human eye. This particular design found the common ground between being unnerving and unrealistic in a truly intimidating way.

“If you were to strip the flesh off your face right now… the muscles would form a Darth Maul-ish pattern," said Ian McCaig, who designed Maul for The Phantom Menace.

"The idea of a flayed flesh face was both beautiful and frightening to me. In addition, there are markings on all kinds of dangerous animals: snakes, tigers, wasps-a dark black stripe on top of red or yellow is often a warning sign to other animals to keep away. Defenseless animals will even adopt this pattern to scare others off,” he stated.

All in all, Ian McCaig clearly knew what he was doing when he created Darth Maul, who has gone on to become one of the most terrifying villains in the entire franchise.

He Can't Grow Any Kind Of Hair

One interesting secret about Darth Maul that actually makes him stand out from a few other Zabraks is that he is unable to grow hair of any kind.

While most members of the Zabrak species are completely bald, a number of them are able to grow hair on the top of their head. However, Maul, in addition to his brother Savage, are exceptions to this, and are thus unable to grow luscious locks of any kind.

However, one trait that all Zabraks share is that they cannot grow any kind of facial hair. This doesn't just mean that Maul can't grow a goatee or a handlebar mustache if he wanted, but it also means that he is unable to grow the type of hair that almost every human can.

Maul can do a lot, from flips in the air to lifting people using the Force, but one thing he cannot do is grow eyebrows or eyelashes.

Even the Zabraks who have hair on top of their heads are unable to grow this basic type of facial hair, which is a rather peculiar trait for their species to have.

The Zabrak villain from Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Asajj Ventress, appears to have eyebrows and eyelashes, but upon closer analysis, this effect is created by make-up, which is used to make her look more intimidating. So even she is not an exception to this rule.

His Legs Are Made From Battle Droid Parts

When Darth Maul's strength and mind were restored by his mother Talzin on Dathomir, she pieced together a set of legs from a number of scrap pieces nearby for him.

The thing is, though, that Dathomir had recently been the grounds to a large battle between the Nightsisters, including Mother Talzin, and the Separatist battle droids, including General Grevious.

Maul's robotic legs were built using some of the wreckage of this battle, with Mother Talzin using a number of the battle droid parts to piece his legs together.

All in all, it was rather convenient that the battle droids remains were there, as it was a lot easier to salvage the mechanical legs than it would have been to attempt making new legs from scratch.

Unfortunately for Maul, battle droids are not known for their strength and durability. The Separatists designed these droids with quantity in mind, rather than quality, hoping to overwhelm their enemies with massive numbers rather than with a few strong robots.

Because of this, Maul's robotic legs actually became a hindrance for him.

During a shoot out on the planet Florrum, one of Maul's legs shattered after being hit by a single shot. Had he not been accompanied by his brother, it's very likely that the weakness of his legs would have cost Maul his life.

He Wears Only A Robe To Stay Agile

Unlike many other Star Wars villains, such as Darth Vader and Kylo Ren, Darth Maul is almost always only depicted wearing a black robe, with a few exceptions where Maul fights people shirtless, while still wearing black robed pants.

Maul didn't feel the need to wear a fully armored suit or even a helmet or mask to cover his face. Instead, all he wore was a cloth outfit with a basic design, but there is a good reason for this.

As shown in The Phantom Menace and a number of episodes from The Clone Wars, Darth Maul proves that he is extremely well skilled in acrobatics, in addition to the Force. His combined Force abilities and flexibility make him one of the most agile fighters in the galaxy far far away.

This decision was likely not just made for the character, but also to help actor Ray Park.

Park trained tirelessly in acrobatics and martial arts in order to give the best, most agile performance he could as the Sith Apprentice. Dressing Park in a flexible robe was a clever way to keep him looking cool and intimidating, while also allowing him to show off his impressive acrobatic skills.

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Can you think of any other secrets about Darth Maul in Star Wars? Sound off in the comments!