Disney released a first look at the return of Warwick Davis as Willow in a new TV series yesterday, and fans of the 1988 movie were instantly drawn back into the world of magic. However, while Davis reprises the title role, one noticeable absence from the show is Val Kilmer as the character of Madmartigan, but that doesn’t mean that there are not a lot of links to his character integrated with the new story.
Willow was a fantasy movie that received mixed critical reviews on its release, but became one of the most-loved fantasy movies of the late 1980s, and also had a reasonable return at the box office. In the years since, Willow’s popularity has continued to grow and that is what has led to the return of the franchise as a brand new series on Disney+. After now being given a November release date, fans have been thrilled to see the first trailer for the series, which will continue the story of Willow decades after the original movie, and being a direct sequel means there will be a lot of connections between the two projects.
Along with Warwick Davis’ Willow, Val Kilmer’s role of Madmartigan was another standout character in the movie, and ones that fans had hoped to see return. Of course, Kilmer has been recently facing a number of health issues, and while he does make a small appearance in Top Gun: Maverick, he could seemingly not take part in the filming of Willow, executive producer Jonathan Kasden explained that Madmartigan is still a big part of the movie. During the Star Wars Celebration event, he said:
"He's a huge part of this story and this series. Val has been in communication with Joann [Whalley] and I and Madmartigan is a character in the story and what we didn't get to shoot with him on Season 1, we've made him a major figure in the story."
Madmartigan’s Daughter Is A Part of Willow, and He Could Return In The Future
The mention of “Season 1” in Kasden’s comments suggest that as long as everything goes well with the series, there could well be more seasons of the show to come, and it may be possible that Kilmer would be able to return for a small role in that. For now, Ruby Cruz appears in the series to continue Madmartigan’s legacy in the series as his daughter. While these is still only a few details known about the plot of the series, it is clear that the show is going to be a thrill for fans old and new.
The official synopsis for the series reads: “The story began with an aspiring magician from a Nelwyn village and an infant girl destined to unite the realms, who together helped destroy an evil queen and banish the forces of darkness. Now, in a magical world where brownies, sorcerers, trolls, and other mystical creatures flourish, the adventure continues, as an unlikely group of heroes set off on a dangerous quest to places far beyond their home, where they must face their inner demons and come together to save their world."