The Witcher (TV series)

The Witcher is a fantasy drama television series created by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich for Netflix. It is based on the book series[a] by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. Set on a fictional, medieval-inspired landmass known as the Continent, The Witcher explores the legend of Geralt of Rivia, Yennefer of Vengerberg and Princess Ciri. It stars Henry Cavill, Anya Chalotra, and Freya Allan.

The Witcher
Genre
Created byLauren Schmidt Hissrich
Based onThe Witcher
by Andrzej Sapkowski
ShowrunnerLauren Schmidt Hissrich
Starring
Composers
Country of origin
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes24
Production
Executive producers
ProducerBeau DeMayo
Production locations
  • Hungary (season 1)
  • United Kingdom (seasons 2–3)
Cinematography
  • Jean-Philippe Gossart
  • Gavin Struthers
Editors
  • Liana Del Giudice
  • Nick Arthurs
  • Jean-Daniel Fernandez-Qundez
  • Xavier Russell
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time47–67 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkNetflix
ReleaseDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20) –
present (present)
Related

The first season, consisting of eight episodes, was released on Netflix on December 20, 2019. It was based on The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny, which are collections of short stories that precede the main The Witcher saga. The second season, also consisting of eight episodes and based on the novel Blood of Elves, was released on December 17, 2021. In September 2021, Netflix renewed the series for a third season, which also consists of eight episodes, released in two volumes on June 29 and July 27, 2023. This will be followed by a fourth season, with Liam Hemsworth taking over the role of Geralt of Rivia. In April 2024, the series was renewed for its fifth and final season.

An animated origin story film, Nightmare of the Wolf, was released on August 23, 2021. A prequel miniseries, Blood Origin, was released on December 25, 2022. A second film, Sirens of the Deep, is expected to be released in February 2025.

Synopsis

edit

The story begins with Geralt of Rivia, Crown Princess Cirilla of Cintra, and the quarter-elf sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg at different points in time, exploring formative events that shape their characters throughout the first season, before eventually merging into a single timeline.

Geralt and Ciri are linked by destiny since before she was born when he unknowingly demanded her as a reward for his services by invoking "the Law of Surprise". After the two finally meet, Geralt becomes the princess's protector and must help her and fight against her various pursuers to prevent her Elder Blood and powerful magic from being used for malevolent purposes and keep Ciri and their world safe.

Cast and characters

edit

Main

edit
  • Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, a magically enhanced monster hunter known as a "witcher". Cintran princess Ciri is his "destiny".
  • Anya Chalotra as Yennefer of Vengerberg, a quarter-elf sorceress.
  • Freya Allan as Ciri, Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon, the crown princess of Cintra, granddaughter of Queen Calanthe and daughter of Pavetta, from whom she inherited the Elder Blood. She is linked to Geralt by destiny.
  • Eamon Farren as Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach, nicknamed the "Black Knight", a Nilfgaardian army commander who leads the invasion of Cintra and the hunt for Cirilla.
  • Joey Batey as Jaskier, a traveling bard who befriends Geralt and accompanies him on his path.
  • MyAnna Buring as Tissaia de Vries (seasons 1–3), mentor to Yennefer and the Rectrix of Aretuza, a training academy for female mages.
  • Mimî M. Khayisa as Fringilla Vigo, a sorceress who trained alongside Yennefer. She eventually leads the Nilfgaardian invasion alongside Cahir.
  • Anna Shaffer as Triss Merigold, a sorceress, the court mage of Temeria and advisor to King Foltest.
  • Royce Pierreson as Istredd, an adept sorcerer and historian who befriends Yennefer at Aretuza.
  • Wilson Mbomio as Dara, a refugee elf boy whom Cirilla befriends after the Slaughter of Cintra.
  • Mahesh Jadu as Vilgefortz of Roggeveen, a charismatic sorcerer who rallies the northern mages to halt the invading Nilfgaardian army in Sodden. He later becomes the leader of the Brotherhood of Mages.
  • Tom Canton as Filavandrel (seasons 2–3; guest season 1), former king of the elves and Francesca's husband.
  • Mecia Simson as Francesca Findabair (seasons 2–present), an elven sorceress, the current queen of the elves, and Filavandrel's wife who has made it her mission to lead her people into freedom and independence.
  • Kim Bodnia as Vesemir (season 2), the oldest living witcher and Geralt's mentor and father figure.
  • Graham McTavish as Sigismund Dijkstra (season 3; recurring season 2), head of the Redanian Intelligence and ally of Philippa Eilhart. McTavish also voiced Deglan in the animated prequel Nightmare of the Wolf.[7]
  • Cassie Clare as Philippa Eilhart (season 3; guest season 2), the shapeshifting court sorceress of King Vizimir of Redania as well as Dijkstra's partner in crime. She has close ties to the Brotherhood.
  • Hugh Skinner as Prince Radovid (season 3), the prince of Redania and Philippa Eilhart's ally.
  • Bart Edwards as Duny, the "Urcheon of Erlenwald" / Emperor Emhyr var Emreis ("The White Flame") (season 3; guest seasons 1–2), Pavetta's husband and Ciri's father, once afflicted by a curse that transformed him into a hedgehog man until midnight.

Recurring

edit
  • Jodhi May as Queen Calanthe, ruler of the Kingdom of Cintra and grandmother of Princess Cirilla.
  • Adam Levy as Mousesack (seasons 1–2), the court druid of Cintra and advisor to Queen Calanthe.
  • Björn Hlynur Haraldsson as King Eist Tuirseach (season 1), husband to Queen Calanthe and step-grandfather of Cirilla.
  • Lars Mikkelsen as Stregobor (seasons 1–3), resident mage in the town of Blaviken and the Rector of Ban Ard, the academy for male mages.
  • Therica Wilson-Read as Sabrina Glevissig, a sorceress who trained alongside Yennefer.
  • Shaun Dooley as King Foltest (seasons 1–2), the king of Temeria, whose incestuous relationship with his sister created a daughter.
  • Terence Maynard as Artorius Vigo (seasons 1–3), court mage from Toussaint and uncle of Fringilla.
  • Judit Fekete as Vanielle of Brugge (season 1), a sorceress and one of the mages who fought during the Battle of Sodden Hill.
  • Paul Bullion as Lambert (season 2), a witcher at Kaer Morhen and friend of Geralt.
  • Yasen Atour as Coën (season 2), a witcher at Kaer Morhen and friend of Geralt.
  • Ania Marson as Voleth Meir (season 2), a demon who came to the plane with the Conjunction of the Spheres, who feeds on pain and fear.
  • Ed Birch as Vizimir (seasons 2–3), the king of Redania.
  • Chris Fulton (season 2) and Sam Woolf (season 3) as Rience, a renegade mage set on a hunt for Ciri.
  • Aisha Fabienne Ross as Lydia van Bredevoort (seasons 2–3), Rience's disfigured liaison who gets him out of prison on her master's orders.
  • Kaine Zajaz as Gage (seasons 2–3), Francesca's brother.

Notable guest stars

edit

Introduced in season 1

edit
  • Emma Appleton as Renfri of Creyden, a princess-turned-bandit who leads a gang of brigands and has a bloody grudge against Stregobor.
  • Mia McKenna-Bruce as Marilka, daughter of Blaviken's alderman.
  • Tobi Bamtefa as Sir Danek, a Cintran commander of Calanthe's royal guard.
  • Maciej Musiał as Sir Lazlo, a Cintran knight charged with protecting Cirilla.
  • Natasha Culzac as Toruviel, an elven warrior serving Filavandrel.
  • Amit Shah as Torque, a sylvan ("horned devil") who works for Filavandrel.
  • Julian Rhind-Tutt as Giltine, the enchanter of Aretuza who brings adepts into their perfect physical forms after they graduate.
  • Gaia Mondadori as Princess Pavetta, the daughter of Queen Calanthe and mother of Ciri.
  • Josette Simon as Eithne, the Queen of the Dryads of Brokilon Forest.
  • Nóra Trokán as the Dryad General.
  • Marcin Czarnik as Ronin Mage, an assassin sent to murder Queen Kalis and her baby daughter.
  • Blair Kincaid as Crach an Craite, a member of a royal clan from the Skellige Isles, who was invited to Pavetta's betrothal event.
  • Lucas Englander as Chireadan, a healer elf from the Redanian city of Rinde.
  • Jordan Renzo as Eyck of Denesle, a virtuous yet pompous knight.
  • Ron Cook as Borch Three Jackdaws, a man who is actually the golden dragon Villentretenmerth.
  • Jeremy Crawford as Yarpen Zigrin, the leader of a gang of dwarven mercenaries and friend of Geralt.
  • Ella-Rae Smith as Fola, a young sorceress in Aretuza.
  • Francis Magee as Yurga, a travelling merchant in Sodden, rescued from monsters by Geralt.
  • Jack Bandeira as Caldemeyn, a young alderman of Blaviken.
  • Anna-Louise Plowman as Zola, Yurga's wife who offers Cirilla sanctuary in her rural home in Sodden.
  • Frida Gustavsson as Ma/Visenna, mother of Geralt of Rivia.

Introduced in season 2

edit
  • Kristofer Hivju as Nivellen, an aristocrat who has been transformed into a beast through a curse.
  • Agnes Born as Vereena, a bruxa and Nivellen's lover.
  • Basil Eidenbenz as Eskel, a witcher at Kaer Morhen and close friend of Geralt.
  • Jota Castellano as Gwain, a witcher at Kaer Morhen.
  • Nathanial Jacobs as Everard, a witcher at Kaer Morhen.
  • Chuey Okoye as Merek, a witcher at Kaer Morhen.
  • Kevin Doyle as Ba'lian, an elf seeking refuge in the most unexpected places of the Continent.
  • Niamh McCormack as Lara Dorren, an extremely powerful, ancient Elven sorceress who fell in love with a human mage, Ciri's ancestor.
  • Adjoa Andoh as Mother Nenneke, the wise High Priestess of the Temple of Melitele in Ellander and an old friend of Geralt.
  • Simon Callow as Codringher, an investigator and partner of Fenn who helps Istredd.
  • Liz Carr as Fenn, an investigator and partner of Codringher who helps Istredd.
  • Rebecca Hanssen as Meve, queen of Lyria.
  • Richard Tirado as Demavend, king of Aedirn.
  • Edward Rowe as Henselt, king of Kaedwen.
  • Luke Cy as Ethain, king of Cidaris.
  • Sam Hazeldine as Eredin, king of the legendary Wild Hunt.

Introduced in season 3

edit
  • Beau Holland as Vespula, Jaskier's on-and-off lover.
  • Robbie Amell as Gallatin, commander of the Scoia'tael elves and an old friend of Cahir who's vying for leadership over the elves with Francesca.
  • Catherine McCormack as Anika, a druid healer and old family friend of Geralt who seeks her help to identify the source of a mind-manipulation spell.
  • Tracy-Ann Oberman as Queen Hedwig of Redania, the wife of King Vizimir.
  • Cal Watson as Eva, a handmaiden at the Redanian court and Philippa Eilhart's lover.
  • Safiyya Ingar as Keira Metz, a Temerian sorceress who runs a business specialising on magic portals.
  • Giuseppe Lentini as Molnar Giancardi, a dwarf and owner of Giancardi's Bank in Gors Velen.
  • Stuart Thompson as Fabio Sachs, a young man who works at Giancardi's Bank in Gors Velen.
  • Rochelle Rose as Margarita Laux-Antille, a sorceress and new headmistress of Aretuza.
  • Michalina Olszańska as Marti Södergren, a sorceress from the Brotherhood.
  • Ryan Hayes as Artaud Terranova, a sorcerer from the Brotherhood.
  • Philip Philmar as Gerhart of Aelle, the oldest living sorcerer and member of the Chapter.
  • Poppy Almond as Bianca d'Este, a sorceress from the Brotherhood.
  • Harvey Quinn as Radcliffe of Oxenfurt, a sorcerer from the Brotherhood.
  • Nathan Laryea as Valdo Marx, a bard and Jaskier's rival.
  • Frances Pooley as Teryn, a half-elf girl with a strong resemblance to Ciri who was magically brainwashed into believing that she is someone else.
  • Dempsey Bovell as Otto Dusan, a werewolf and ally of Anika who Geralt helped out before.
  • Hiftu Quasem as Falka, a half-elven rebel princess who was burnt at the stake for her crimes and appears in Ciri's visions.
  • Jim Sturgeon as Aplegatt, a royal messenger.
  • Meng'er Zhang as Milva, a highly skilled archer and one of the only non-dryad inhabitants of the Brokilon Forest.
  • The Rats:
    • Ben Radcliffe as Giselher, the leader of the criminal gang The Rats.
    • Christelle Elwin as Mistle, a member of a group of young criminals known as the Rats.
    • Fabian McCallum as Kayleigh, a member of the criminal gang The Rats.
    • Aggy K. Adams as Iskra, an elf and a member of the criminal gang The Rats.
    • Connor Crawford as Aske, a member of the criminal gang The Rats.
    • Juliette Alexandra as Reef, a member of the criminal gang The Rats.

Episodes

edit
SeasonEpisodesOriginally released
18December 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
28December 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
385June 29, 2023 (2023-06-29)
3July 27, 2023 (2023-07-27)

Season 1 (2019)

edit

The first season is based on The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny.[8] A website with timelines for the show, along with in-depth summaries of events, was later created by Netflix.[9]

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date
11"The End's Beginning"Alik SakharovLauren Schmidt HissrichDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
Following Geralt of Rivia's battle with a kikimora in 1231, he enters the town of Blaviken and meets Renfri, a cursed princess-turned-bandit. She is hunted by the wizard Stregobor, who believes her evil for being born during an eclipse. Stregobor lures Geralt to his hideout, seeking to hire him to kill Renfri, but Geralt refuses. Renfri later offers Geralt a counter-proposal, but he refuses with an ultimatum: leave or die. Renfri feigns agreement with the ultimatum, but upon waking up the next morning, Geralt realizes Renfri will not stop until Stregobor is dead, and he rushes to stop her. After killing her men, he fights and fatally wounds Renfri, whose dying words tell of a girl in the forest who is his eternal destiny. Stregobor arrives to take Renfri's body for autopsy. When Geralt opposes, the townsfolk forces him to leave, urged on by Stregobor. In 1263, Nilfgaard conquers the northern kingdom of Cintra. Princess Cirilla, also known as Ciri, is sent away by her grandmother, Queen Calanthe, to escape and find Geralt. Cahir, a Nilfgaardian officer, captures Cirilla, but seeing the burning city and castle triggers her powers, allowing her to escape.
Based on "The Lesser Evil" from The Last Wish.[8]
22"Four Marks"Alik SakharovJenny KleinDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
In 1206, hunchback Yennefer from Vengerberg of Aedirn is sold to Tissaia de Vries by her father. She is taken to Aretuza for training in magic, but finds the practice difficult. She forms a friendship with Istredd, even revealing her quarter-elf heritage, which caused her deformity. Unbeknownst to either, Tissaia and Stregobor were using Yennefer and Istredd respectively to spy on each other. Later, Yennefer witnesses Tissaia turning three students into eels to act as conduits powering Aretuza with magic. In 1240, Geralt is hired to investigate grain thefts in Posada and is followed by Jaskier the bard. They encounter a Sylvan named Torque, who knocks them unconscious and takes them to his mountain cave. There, Geralt meets Filavandrel, the elven king, and urges he lead his people to better lands after being banished by the humans. Instead of killing them, Filavandrel frees Geralt and Jaskier, taking the witcher's words to heart. In 1263, Cirilla encounters Dara, a boy in the woods, who guides her to a refugee camp. Dara returns to save her when the camp is attacked by Cahir's forces; she later realizes Dara is an elf.
Based on "The Edge of the World" from The Last Wish.[8]
33"Betrayer Moon"Alex Garcia LopezBeau DeMayoDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
In 1210, Yennefer and Istredd become lovers while finishing their training. While Yennefer has the chance to transform her body into her ideal image during graduation, the Brotherhood of Sorcerers discuss the allocation of their newly initiated to their respective kingdoms. Through Stregobor's scheming, Yennefer is assigned to Nilfgaard instead of her preferred Aedirn due to her elven blood. Yennefer angrily breaks off her relationship with Istredd, knowing only he could have told Stregobor about her heritage. Having missed graduation, Yennefer undergoes the painful transformation to be beautiful at the cost of her fertility. With her new body, Yennefer charms Aedirn's King Virfuril into taking her as advisor, sending Fringilla to Nilfgaard instead. In 1243, Geralt enters the kingdom of Temeria to investigate a monster, assisted by Triss Merigold, King Foltest's sorceress advisor. He identifies the monster as a Strzyga, a creature born from a curse he later discovers was placed by the courtier Ostrit who learned about the affair between Foltest and his sister, Princess Adda. Using Ostrit as bait, Geralt battles to contain the Striga until dawn, which lifts the curse. In 1263, Cirilla enters a dense forest in a trance as Dara follows to help.
Based on "The Witcher" from The Last Wish.[8]
44"Of Banquets, Bastards and Burials"Alex Garcia LopezDeclan de BarraDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
In 1240, having served Aedirn for thirty years, Yennefer, along with Queen Kalis of Lyria, is ambushed by an assassin. In the ensuing chase, Yennefer flees, unable to save Kalis and her newborn daughter from the assassin. In 1249, Geralt accompanies Jaskier to the betrothal feast of Princess Pavetta, Queen Calanthe's daughter. Urcheon of Erlenwald (also named Duny) interrupts to demand Pavetta's hand through the Law of Surprise, having saved her father's life several years earlier. Urcheon suffers from a curse that transformed him into a humanoid hedgehog creature. Despite Pavetta's acceptance, Calanthe refuses and a brawl ensues. When Calanthe tries killing Urcheon, Pavetta activates her power, unleashing a maelstrom until Geralt and Mousesack intervene. Wanting her daughter happy, Calanthe marries Duny and Pavetta, which lifts his curse. Duny, thankful for Geralt's aid, insists he take a reward. Geralt jokingly invokes the Law of Surprise for something Duny has but does not yet know. The crowd then immediately learns Pavetta is pregnant. In 1263, Nilfgaard's forces resume their pursuit of Cirilla, Pavetta's daughter, with Mousesack as their prisoner. Meanwhile, Cirilla and Dara encounter the dryad queen Eithne in Brokilon Forest, while Cahir and Fringilla track Ciri's location.
Based on "A Question of Price" from The Last Wish, and "Sword of Destiny" from Sword of Destiny.[8]
55"Bottled Appetites"Charlotte BrändströmSneha KoorseDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
In 1256, seven years after Pavetta's betrothal, Geralt and Jaskier discover a Djinn and accidentally release it. Initially, it seems that Jaskier is the Djinn's 'master', but then he falls seriously ill. Geralt seeks help from the nearest healer, the elf Chireadan, but since they need a mage to heal Jaskier, Chireadan reluctantly refers them to Yennefer. Although Yennefer cures Jaskier, her plan is to use him to capture the Djinn and force it to grant her her wish of regaining her fertility. As Jaskier uses his last wish, nothing happens and it is revealed that it is Geralt, not Jaskier, who has actually gained the wishes. Geralt realizes the Djinn will kill Yennefer, so he uses his third and final wish to save her (but the wish itself is not revealed). The Djinn leaves. Now free and safe, Yennefer asks what his third wish was, but Geralt falls asleep after they have sex without answering. In 1263, Cahir hires a doppler to assume the identity of Mousesack; the doppler copies his physical form and memories, then kills him. Later, Eithne allows Ciri to stay in Brokilon, but "Mousesack" arrives and requests Ciri and Dara leave with him.
Based on "The Last Wish" from The Last Wish.[8]
66"Rare Species"Charlotte BrändströmHaily HallDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
In 1262, Geralt, Jaskier, Yennefer, and a group of monster hunters are invited on a dragon hunt by Borch and his bodyguards along with a band of dwarves. After camping overnight, they find the Reavers have left. On their way, the bridge collapses, and Borch's group sacrifices themselves to save the rest. Geralt and Yennefer reconcile before finding a dead dragon in its den, guarded by the bodyguards. Borch, revealed as a golden dragon, explains he protected the dragon's egg as he knew the group wouldn't harm it. They defend the egg from the Reavers, and Borch rewards the dwarves with dragon teeth. Geralt reveals his third wish to Yennefer, linking their fates together. Feeling that her emotions are insincere, Yennefer ends their relationship and departs. This leaves Geralt angry and hurt, he blames Jaskier for his misfortunes before leaving him.
Based on "The Bounds of Reason" from Sword of Destiny.[8]
77"Before a Fall"Alik Sakharov & Marc JobstMike OstrowskiDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
In 1263, with Nilfgaard poised to invade Cintra, Geralt decides to invoke his Law of Surprise and claim Ciri to protect her, but Calanthe, unwilling to give up the last remaining strand of her daughter's life, offers a different young girl in Ciri's place. After realising the deception, Geralt confronts Calanthe and is then imprisoned by Eist. After visiting Istredd and failing to reignite their relationship, Yennefer returns to Aretuza with the sorcerer Vilgefortz. When he announces his intention to rally mages to oppose Nilfgaard, she declines. The Brotherhood votes to remain neutral, but Tissaia, Vilgefortz, Triss and other mages resolve to fight. Tissaia convinces Yennefer to join. Nilfgaard invades Cintra, sacking the city and breaching the castle. Calanthe tries to send Ciri away with Geralt, but he has escaped his cell and is nowhere to be found. Ciri fends for herself after escaping Cintra, stealing a horse from a woman who offers her shelter. Later, she is discovered by her old friends who suddenly turn on her, and her powers activate.
Based on "Something More" from Sword of Destiny.[8]
88"Much More"Marc JobstLauren Schmidt HissrichDecember 20, 2019 (2019-12-20)
Having escaped from Cintra, Geralt defends a merchant from undead monsters, but is wounded and loses consciousness. Yennefer and the mages reinforce the keep of Sodden Hill, aiming to prevent Nilfgaardian forces from invading the remaining Northern Kingdoms. The Nilfgaardians launch their attack, and a battle starts. Tissaia attempts to talk down Fringilla, but Fringilla disables her. Vilgefortz fights Cahir, but loses and is thrown down a hill. When Vilgefortz wakes up, he kills a Northern sorcerer, revealing himself to be a turncoat. Nilfgaardian soldiers begin to overrun the fort, but Yennefer channels a massive stream of fire, annihilating much of the army before seemingly disappearing. Ciri is awakened by the woman she stole the horse from earlier, and discovers the dead bodies around her. The woman takes her to her farm. Geralt dreams about his mother Visenna, who abandoned him as a child to be made into a witcher, then wakes to find himself on the merchant's cart. When they arrive at the merchant's farm, he hears the woman talk to the man about Ciri. He heads into the forest, where Ciri and Geralt finally meet and embrace. She asks Geralt who Yennefer is.
Based on "Something More" from Sword of Destiny.[8]

Season 2 (2021)

edit

The second season is based on "A Grain of Truth" from The Last Wish,[10] Blood of Elves, and the beginning of Time of Contempt.[11]

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date
91"A Grain of Truth"Stephen SurjikDeclan de BarraDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
On the battlefield after the victory of the Northern Kingdoms, Geralt and Ciri encounter Tissaia, who tells them that Yennefer is dead. Traveling with Ciri, Geralt stops to visit his friend Nivellen and discovers that he has been cursed into a beast by a priestess for vandalizing a temple. Geralt investigates the nearby village and determines that a Bruxa, a vampire, caused the villagers to flee. He returns and sees the Bruxa drinking Nivellen's blood. Geralt fights and kills it, which lifts Nivellen's curse. Nivellen reveals that he loved the Bruxa and did nothing to stop her from attacking the village, and that his curse stemmed from him raping the priestess. Nivellen begs Geralt to kill him but Geralt refuses. In Aretuza, Tissaia tortures Cahir for information on Nilfgaard. Fringilla has taken Yennefer captive and is heading towards Cintra, but their party is ambushed on the road.
Based on "A Grain of Truth" from The Last Wish.[10]
102"Kaer Morhen"Stephen SurjikBeau DeMayoDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
Yennefer and Fringilla are captured by elves, who are digging near a ruined monolith. Their leader, sorceress Francesca Findabair, is having visions of a white-robed figure she believes to be the elven prophet Ithlinne. Yennefer and Fringilla also dream of robed figures, red and black, respectively. The three sorceresses find a hidden a passage leading to a magic hut. There, they meet the Deathless Mother, a mysterious being who takes on a different form for each – Yennefer sees a younger Tissaia, Fringilla sees Emperor Emhyr, and Francesca sees Ithlinne – and reveals the path each must take to achieve their greatest desire. The sorceresses are released. Fringilla joins Francesca to form an elven-Nilfgaardian alliance; Yennefer calls them fools and discovers she has lost her magic. Geralt and Ciri join the remaining witchers at Kaer Morhen. Eskel arrives late, after hunting an leshy. The witchers are partying when their medallions start vibrating, indicating a monster is near. Geralt discovers Eskel was infected by the leshy and has been transformed into one. Unable to control his leshy side, Eskel attacks Vesemir, forcing Geralt to kill him. Realizing Kaer Morhen is not safe, Geralt agrees to train Ciri in combat.
113"What Is Lost"Sarah O'GormanTeleplay by : Lauren Schmidt Hissrich & Clare Higgins
Story by : Clare Higgins
December 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
Ciri continues to train in swordsmanship, fitness, and agility. Vesemir investigates the mutated leshy. Yennefer makes her way to Aretuza; Tissaia informs her that her absence has aroused suspicions regarding her allegiance among the Brotherhood, and implores her to lie low. Stregobor interrogates Yennefer, until Tissaia intervenes. She later reveals to Yennefer that she knows that she lost her magic. The Council of the Brotherhood decrees that to prove her loyalty, Yennefer must execute Cahir. During the execution ceremony, in front of an audience of the Brotherhood and the Northern monarchs, Yennefer releases Cahir and the two escape. A pregnant Francesca and the elves settle in Cintra under the protection of Nilfgaard. In Kaer Morhen, Geralt reveals to Ciri that she may have inherited magical powers from her mother. They track down the leshy. During the battle, a centipede-like monster called a myriapod appears and kills the leshy before pursuing Ciri. Geralt kills the myriapod.
124"Redanian Intelligence"Sarah O'GormanSneha KoorseDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
Triss arrives at Kaer Morhen, having been invited by Geralt to help Ciri in magical training. Geralt, Ciri, and Triss investigate the origins of the myriapod and leshy, finding that they are connected to monoliths. Ciri confesses that she toppled a monolith in Cintra. Triss portals Geralt to Istredd who is known for studying monoliths. Vesemir discovers that Ciri has Elder blood, long thought extinct and rumored to be an ingredient in mutagens used to create more witchers but the art had been lost a long time ago. Now wanted, Yennefer and Cahir escape to the city of Oxenfurt in the North where a pogrom against elves is taking place. In Redania, Sigismund Dijkstra and Philippa Eilhart, spymaster and court mage respectively to King Vizimir, began to plot the seizure of Cintra. They recruit the imprisoned elf Dara as an informant. Meanwhile, Yennefer and Cahir discover that a figure called The Sandpiper, revealed to be Jaskier, is smuggling elves to Cintra. With Jaskier's help, Yennefer, Cahir, and Dara board the ship bound for Cintra. After Jaskier leaves, Yennefer finds that he has gotten into trouble.
135"Turn Your Back"Ed BazalgetteHaily HallDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
Rience, a fire mage, is freed from prison and tasked to find Ciri by the sorceress Lydia, who is serving an unknown master. Geralt and Istredd travel to the fallen monolith outside Cintra. Yennefer, having disembarked from the ship, rescues Jaskier from Rience; they are then separated and captured by city guards. Vesemir reveals his plan to create new witchers to Ciri. Ciri agrees but insists on being the first candidate. Investigating the ruins of the monolith, Geralt and Istredd hypothesize that the monoliths are gateways that, when activated, allow monsters to enter their world. Geralt learns from Istredd that Yennefer is alive. Triss, attempting to dissuade Ciri, conducts a ritual in hopes of discovering Ciri's source of power. They uncover Ithlinne's prophecy, which predicts that a child of the Elder blood will destroy the world. Ciri's powers activate the Cintra monolith, causing a Chernobog to appear, which then flies away. Geralt portals back to Kaer Morhen, stopping Ciri from taking part in the conversion. Cahir arrives at Cintra. Yennefer summons the Deathless Mother and disappears; she is tasked with delivering Ciri to a location outside Cintra.
146"Dear Friend"Louise HooperMatthew D'AmbrosioDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
Geralt and Ciri are attacked by the Chernobog. Geralt kills it, but Roach, his horse, is fatally wounded. At Kaer Morhen, Rience steals mutagens and escapes after ambushing Vesemir and Triss. Geralt puts Roach out of her misery. He and Ciri head to the Temple of Melitele. Yennefer arrives, realizing Ciri's significance for restoring her magic. Francesca gives birth to the first full elf in years. Cahir reveals Emhyr's visit to Cintra. Istredd discovers a connection between Ciri and Lara Dorren, a legendary elven warrior. Yennefer warns Geralt about Jaskier's trouble. Rience, the fire mage, hunts for Ciri. Rience appears at the temple with the Michelet Brothers. Geralt holds him off as Yennefer teaches Ciri to open a portal. Rience escapes, and Yennefer and Ciri disappear through the portal. Triss tells Tissaia about Ciri's Elder blood.
157"Voleth Meir"Louise HooperMike OstrowskiDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
Yennefer and Ciri portal to the home of the woman who took Ciri in and discover the family was murdered by Rience. Meanwhile, Geralt frees Jaskier from prison. Jaskier tells him about Yennefer's lost magic and her muttered incantation. Recognizing the incantation, Geralt realizes Yennefer is in league with Voleth Meir (the Deathless Mother), a demon that feeds on pain. The birth of Francesca's baby causes the elves to focus on rebuilding instead of fighting for Nilfgaard. Frustrated with her slipping grasp on power, Fringilla assassinates four of the White Flame's generals and intimidates Cahir into vouching for her to the emperor. Tissaia tells Vilgefortz about Ciri, betraying Triss. Dara quits spying for Dijkstra. Ciri inadvertently reads Yennefer's mind and sees her betrayal. Upset, she has an outburst that alerts a nearby Nilfgaardian patrol, but Geralt and Jaskier, aided by Yarpen Zigrin's dwarven crew, arrive in time to defeat them. Geralt draws his blade on Yennefer while Yarpen and Jaskier take Ciri to Kaer Morhen. In the castle, Francesca and Filavandrel awaken to find their baby murdered and Francesca's outburst of pain gives Voleth Meir the strength to break free and possess Ciri.
168"Family"Ed BazalgetteLauren Schmidt HissrichDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
At Kaer Morhen, Voleth Meir possessing Ciri's body murders several witchers. Geralt, Vesemir and the remaining witchers are unable to contain her, but Yennefer offers herself as a host to Voleth Meir, freeing Ciri from her control. Ciri teleports herself, Geralt and Yennefer to an unknown world where Voleth Meir leaves Yennefer's body, recreates her own and rejoins the Wild Hunt who threaten to abduct Ciri before she teleports them back to Kaer Morhen. There, Yennefer discovers her powers have returned and Geralt decides they must leave as Ciri's power and right to the throne of Cintra will make her a target. Meanwhile, the Northern monarchs meet with Tissaia and put a bounty on Ciri. In Redania, Francesca, who blames the Northern kingdoms for the loss of her baby, kills human babies in retaliation. Later, she learns of Ciri's Elder blood and resolves to seek her out as the hope of the elvenkind. Emperor Emhyr, revealed to be Ciri's father Duny, arrives to Cintra, reveals it was him who had Francesca's newborn killed, and takes action against Fringilla and Cahir.

Season 3 (2023)

edit

The third season is based on Time of Contempt and details from Blood of Elves and Baptism of Fire.[12]

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date
Volume 1
171"Shaerrawedd"Stephen SurjikMike OstrowskiJune 29, 2023 (2023-06-29)
Having left Kaer Morhen, Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri are on the run from bounty hunters while continuing Ciri's training in fighting and sorcery. After six months, they settle down in a home provided by Yarpen Zigrin, but when a jackapace attacks on Rience's orders, the exposed trio decide to lure Rience into a trap to deal with him once and for all. Francesca Findabair's Scoia'tael are looking for Ciri whom they see as the destined savior of the elves. In Redania, King Vizimir is disillusioned with his spymaster Dijkstra and his court mage Philippa Eilhart's failure to capture Ciri whom he intended to marry, so he entrusts the task to his brother Radovid. Redanians secretly negotiate about Ciri with Jaskier whom they supported in his altruistic actions as the Sandpiper. At the elven ruins of Shaerrawedd, Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri, Jaskier and Yarpen's party are confronted by both Rience's men and the Scoia'tael. A three-way battle ensues and Yennefer learns Rience acts on behalf of an unknown powerful mage, suggesting they seek help from Tissaia de Vries. Jaskier tells Philippa and Radovid he will help them get Ciri, but they need to win her trust by taking out Rience.
182"Unbound"Stephen SurjikTania LotiaJune 29, 2023 (2023-06-29)
Yennefer and Ciri travel incognito to Aretuza, but Ciri's uncontrolled magic hinders and compromises them, causing conflict between the two until they reconcile over their similar backgrounds. At Aretuza, Triss Merigold, now a teacher, discovers several students to be missing. In Nilfgaard-controlled Cintra, a demoted Fringilla escapes imprisonment and Cahir is saved from attackers by Gallatin, his elf friend and member of the Scoia'tael. Geralt and Jaskier visit Codringher and Fenn for information on Rience and the investigators reveal Rience and his mastermind's base of operations to be a Redanian castle of Vuilpanne. Later, Rience interrogates Codringher and Fenn about Geralt before murdering them, spied on by Philippa. At Vuilpanne, Geralt slays a monster, who turns out to be three women transformed by mutagenic sorcery, and he also saves a distraught half-elven girl from the fortress. After getting to safety, the girl recognizes Geralt and claims to be Ciri.
193"Reunion"Gandja MonteiroHaily HallJune 29, 2023 (2023-06-29)
Geralt brings the half-elven girl to his friend Anika, a druidess, who learns that the girl's name is Teryn and she was subjected to mind-control magic. Geralt tries to extract information from Teryn, but an unknown mage possesses her and attacks everyone. Later, an injured Anika reveals to Geralt that his mother Visenna, her old friend, passed away. In Gors Velen, Yennefer meets Tissaia de Vries while Ciri causes mayhem in the city, drawing attention to herself once more when she exposes a con artist thanks to her witcher knowledge. After slaying a runaway wyvern, she is robbed and while pursuing the thief, she encounters Yennefer and other sorceresses who take her to a bathhouse. Disillusioned and frustrated with their behavior, Ciri runs away after a fight with Yennefer. Istredd is looking for the Book of Monoliths, a tome of ancient and dangerous elven magic. Rience meets with Lydia to discuss their next steps. After Gallatin informs Emperor Emhyr of Francesca's actions, Emhyr instructs Cahir to prove his loyalty which leads Cahir to murder Gallatin, breaking down afterwards. On the run from Gors Velen, Ciri is ambushed by the Wild Hunt, but she is saved by Geralt.
204"The Invitation"Gandja MonteiroRae BenjaminJune 29, 2023 (2023-06-29)
Emperor Emhyr commands Cahir to assassinate Francesca. Upon reaching her and the Scoia'tael, Cahir persuades her to join forces in their search for Ciri. Fringilla enjoys her newfound freedom. Aboard a ship to Aretuza, Geralt, Ciri, Jaskier, and the rest of the crew are attacked by an aeschna which Geralt and Ciri kill. At Aretuza, Yennefer convinces the Brotherhood of Sorcerers to host a conclave for mages to strengthen unity of the North against Nilfgaard. Later, Yennefer visits the Redanian court to invite Philippa Eilhart and try win the support of King Vizimir who orders not only Philippa, but Dijkstra and Radovid to attend as well. On her way back, Yennefer is ambushed. Meanwhile, Triss and Istredd investigate the missing Aretuzan students and Book of Monoliths, respectively. Similarly to Yennefer and Geralt, they arrive at the conclusion that Stregobor is the mastermind behind those events as well as Rience's actions. Ciri and Jaskier are kept in a safe haven outside of Aretuza. There, Jaskier is approached by Radovid and they confess their romantic feelings for one another and kiss. Geralt, Yennefer, and the Northern mages gather at Aretuza to begin the conclave with a banquet.
215"The Art of Illusion"Loni PeristereClare HigginsJune 29, 2023 (2023-06-29)
Once the banquet is over, Geralt and Yennefer discuss the night's events in retrospective. Despite his disdain, Geralt socializes with the revelling sorcerers as Yennefer reminds him they need to lie low in order to expose Stregobor during the following conclave. Their plans change, however, when Yennefer is alerted by Istredd and Triss about Stregobor's possession of the Book of Monoliths. Geralt and Istredd pretend a fight to cover for Yennefer as she breaks into Stregobor's study where they discover the book, as well as apparent evidence of kidnapping half-elven students. Stregobor is arrested by Tissaia, Vilgefortz and Artorius, and the banquet is deemed a diplomatic success. Once Yennefer and Geralt put all the pieces of the night together, however, they realize the mastermind behind Rience's actions and the kidnappings is Vilgefortz who only framed Stregobor. Scouting the halls to clear their path, Geralt is distracted by sounds of a distant fight and ambushed at knife-point by Dijkstra.
Volume 2
226"Everybody Has a Plan 'til They Get Punched in the Face"Loni PeristereJavier Grillo-MarxuachJuly 27, 2023 (2023-07-27)
Dijkstra takes Geralt prisoner. Redanian soldiers led by Philippa along with Northern mages strike a coup and arrest mages who collaborated with Nilfgaard under Vilgefortz. Disbelieving the accusation, Tissaia frees the apprehended mages only for Vilgefortz to reveal himself as the traitor and flee Aretuza to capture Ciri. Before that, he allows Nilfgaardian and Scoia'tael forces led by Cahir and Francesca to invade Aretuza. This starts a battle between them and the Northern mages. Radovid seemingly tries to kidnap Ciri, but is caught red-handed by Jaskier. Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer are ambushed by Rience, but kill him together. Yennefer then decides to join the battle which leaves Aretuza in ruins as many die on both sides, including Filavandrel and Stregobor. Geralt and Ciri are saved from the Scoia'tael by Cahir who had a change of heart, but soon they are encountered by Vilgefortz. Geralt commands Ciri to run and fights Vilgefortz, who defeats him and follows Ciri. Grievously wounded, Geralt is found by Triss who takes him to Brokilon. Before being captured at the tower of Tor Lara, Ciri taps into a monolith's power, unleashing an explosion which destroys the tower.
237"Out of the Fire, Into the Frying Pan"Bola OgunMatthew D'AmbrosioJuly 27, 2023 (2023-07-27)
At Aretuza, Jaskier confronts Radovid about his attempt to capture Ciri for Redania and the two part ways. Jaskier also reunites with Yennefer who reveals that Ciri is missing. In Brokilon, dryads led by Queen Eithné take care of the wounded Geralt. Teleported through a portal at Tor Lara, Ciri appears in the wasteland of the Korath desert. Struggling to find water or food, she is encountered by a unicorn she names "Little Horse" who keeps her company. Wandering the desert for days, Ciri is tormented by visions of the past and future, her loved ones and Falka, a half-elven princess burnt at the stake for her crimes. A desert monster wounds Little Horse and attacks Ciri, who is persuaded by the vision of Falka to use fire magic to heal the unicorn. As she does, a fiery vision nearly consumes her before she relinquishes her magic and loses consciousness, waking up surrounded by bounty hunters. Jaskier visits Brokilon and finds out the forest became a refuge for people escaping the war between the North and Nilfgaard. As he finds a recovering Geralt, he informs him of rumors about Ciri being on her way to Nilfgaard.
248"The Cost of Chaos"Bola OgunMike Ostrowski & Troy DangerfieldJuly 27, 2023 (2023-07-27)
Searching for Ciri, Yennefer meets with Crach an Craite, who heard that Ciri is going to Nilfgaard. Yennefer and other mages raid Vilgefortz's fortress, but find it empty save for the corpses of kidnapped Aretuzan students. Later, they encounter Philippa who blames Tissaia for the tragic outcome of the Thanedd Coup. Guilt-ridden, Tissaia commits suicide in Aretuza. With the old Brotherhood of Sorcerers gone, the remaining mages decide to take over and stop Vilgefortz. In Redania, King Vizimir orders Dijkstra to murder Philippa as a scapegoat for the failed coup, but Philippa, forewarned, orchestrates Vizimir's assassination and crowns Radovid. Geralt, healed by Yennefer, sets out to save Ciri from Emhyr, accompanied by Jaskier and young archer Milva. Fringilla and Francesca arrive in Nilfgaard, plotting against Emhyr, but when Fringilla accidentally reveals the truth about Nilfgaard's part in the murder of her baby, Francesca leaves swearing revenge. Later, Emhyr welcomes Ciri to the Nilfgaardian court but, seemingly unbeknownst to him, she turns out to be Teryn posing as Ciri. Captured by bounty hunters, Ciri is saved by the Rats, a bandit group who encourages her to kill her kidnapper. When they ask her name, Ciri introduces herself as "Falka".

Production

edit

Development

edit

Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher book series was initially scheduled to be adapted into a standalone Netflix film, but Kelly Luegenbiehl, Vice President of International Originals at Netflix, dissuaded the producers. She recalled asking them, "How can you take eight novels and just turn it into a film? There's so much material here. Through a number of conversations, the producers got really excited about the idea of using the source material for a longer-running series."[13] In May 2017, Netflix announced the start of production on an English-language drama TV series based on the books.[14][15]

In December 2017, it was reported that Lauren Schmidt Hissrich would serve as showrunner on the show.[16] In April 2018, Schmidt Hissrich revealed that the script for the pilot episode was finished and that the first season would be eight episodes long.[17] In 2017, it was reported that Andrzej Sapkowski would serve as a creative consultant on the show, but in January 2018, Sapkowski denied any direct involvement.[18] However, he met with Schmidt Hissrich in April 2018,[19][20] and in May 2018, she stated that Sapkowski was on the creative team of the project.[21] In August, Andrew Laws was revealed as production designer.[22] In December, Radio Times reported directors Alik Sakharov and Charlotte Brändström had joined the project.[23]

Netflix announced a second season on November 13, 2019,[24][25] under the working title "Mysterious Monsters",[26] with production set to begin in London in early 2020, for a planned release in 2021.[27] In April 2021, Netflix's co-chief executive officer and chief content officer, Ted Sarandos, confirmed that the second season was expected to premiere in Q4 2021.[28][29] In July 2021, it was announced that the second season would premiere on December 17, 2021.[30] On September 25, 2021, Netflix announced that the series had been renewed for a third season.[31] In April 2023, it was announced that the third season would be split into two volumes, to be released on June 29 and July 27, 2023, respectively.[32] In the midst of filming the fourth season, Netflix renewed the series for a fifth and final season in April 2024.[33]

Writing

edit

The first season was told in a non-linear manner, spanning different time periods. Schmidt Hissrich said this was inspired by Christopher Nolan's 2017 film Dunkirk.[34] She pointed out that Yennefer's story covers around 70 years and Ciri's only about 2 weeks.[35] Schmidt Hissrich also said that Yennefer and Cirilla were given more prominence to allow the viewers to understand them better. By showing their backstories, along with Geralt's, "we get down to the soul of the story. It's the story of a broken family. It's a story of three people who are on their own in the world, really orphans all living in the margins of society who are determined to not need anyone, and yet of course they do."[36]

Schmidt Hissrich said the story for the second season will build on the foundations of the first season, becoming more focused; the characters will interact with each other more frequently.[37] "When I talk about The Witcher, I always talk about how these three characters coming together — Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer — they come together as a family. It's the most important part of the series for me," Schmidt Hissrich said. "And when you start to imagine someone's family, you also need to understand their family of origin. For Geralt, it's his brothers, it's the brotherhood of the witchers. So I'm really excited to get back in and meet Vesemir, his father figure, for the first time and all of these men that he was raised with since he was seven years old."[38]

Casting

edit
 
Freya Allan, Henry Cavill and Anya Chalotra at the 2019 San Diego Convention for The Witcher

In September 2018, Netflix announced that Henry Cavill would play Geralt of Rivia.[39][40] He was selected from more than 200 actors;[41] Cavill actively campaigned for the role, being a long-time fan of the video game adaptations.[42] In October 2018, Freya Allan and Anya Chalotra were cast as Princess Cirilla and Yennefer of Vengerberg respectively, while Jodhi May, Björn Hlynur Haraldsson, Adam Levy, MyAnna Buring, Mimi Ndiweni, and Therica Wilson-Read also joined.[43] More casting was announced later that month, including Eamon Farren, Joey Batey, Lars Mikkelsen, Royce Pierreson, Maciej Musiał, Wilson Radjou-Pujalte, and Anna Shaffer.[44]

In February 2020, Netflix announced Kim Bodnia had been cast as Vesemir, an experienced witcher and a mentor to Geralt.[45] Other additions included Kristofer Hivju,[46] Yasen Atour, Agnes Born, Paul Bullion, Thue Ersted Rasmussen,[47] Aisha Fabienne Ross, and Mecia Simson.[45] In September 2020, it was announced that Basil Eidenbenz would replace Rasmussen in the role of Eskel.[48] In November 2020, Rebecca Hanssen was announced for the role of Queen Meve.[49]

In March 2021, Kevin Doyle was cast as Ba'Lian, an original character who does not appear in the novels. Cassie Clare, Adjoa Andoh, Liz Carr, Simon Callow, Graham McTavish, and Chris Fulton were cast as Philippa Eilhart, Nenneke, Fenn, Codringher, Dijkstra, and Rience, respectively.[50]

In April 2022, Robbie Amell, Meng'er Zhang, Hugh Skinner, and Christelle Elwin joined the cast in the third season with recurring roles.[51] In July 2022, Michalina Olszańska, Ryan Hayes, Kate Winter, Martyn Ellis, Harvey Quinn, and Poppy Almond were cast.[52]

In October 2022, Netflix announced that Liam Hemsworth would be replacing Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia from the start of Season 4.[53] In January 2024 it was announced that Laurence Fishburne was cast as Regis.[54]

The series' casting director is Sophie Holland.[55]

Filming

edit

In April 2018, Schmidt Hissrich revealed that the show would be filmed in Central and Eastern Europe.[56]

Principal photography for the first season began on October 31, 2018, in Hungary.[44] Much of the series was filmed at Mafilm Studios near Budapest; the outdoor set included the exterior of wizard Stregobor's household. The hall in Cintra was constructed at Origo Studios on the outskirts of Budapest. Fort Monostor (Monostori Erőd) and the nearby forest was used for some exterior scenes in Cintra. The Battle of Marnadal was filmed in the hills of a village in Hungary, Csákberény. The village that was Yennefer's original home was filmed at the Skanzen Village Museum, an open-air site near Szentendre some 30 kilometres (20 mi) north of Budapest; this location was also used in scenes with Ciri in an area with a windmill. The production used the exteriors of Burg Kreuzenstein, a castle near Leobendorf, Austria, for the abandoned fictional castle Vizima, but the interiors were filmed at Origo Studios.[57]

In March 2019, production commenced on Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, Spain. Some scenes were to be shot on the islands of La Palma and La Gomera, as well.[58] Scenes of the Sorcerers' Aretuza Academy (Tower of the Gull) were shot on Roque de Santo Domingo in Garafía, an islet, and enhanced with CGI. The interiors, however, used for the graduation ball were at the Kiscelli Museum in Óbuda. The museum was a monastery in the 18th century. This location was also used for the conclave of the Northern Mages. The Barranco de Fataga area on Gran Canaria island was used for some scenes of arid landscapes. Scenes of Ciri traveling in the desert were filmed in the Natural Dune Reserve of Maspalomas on Gran Canaria. Most of episode six was filmed on La Palma island.[59]

Filming of the first season concluded in Ogrodzieniec Castle in Poland. The ruins of this medieval castle, dating from the 1300s, were the backdrop for scenes including the fictional Vilgefortz of Roggeveen and Triss Merigold. The ruins were also included when shooting the Battle of Sodden Hill in the final episode of Season 1.[59][60] Filming for the first season wrapped in May 2019.[61]

Filming for the second season began in London in early 2020 but was halted for two weeks in March due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic[62] and actor Kristofer Hivju's confirmation that he had tested positive for COVID-19.[63] Then, in May 2020, film and television productions that were filming in the UK were given permission to resume filming, including season two of The Witcher.[64] The show resumed preproduction in July and officially resumed filming on August 12, 2020,[65][66] with filming for the second season expected to extend into early 2021.[67] On November 7, 2020, production was halted again after a number of crew members had tested positive for COVID-19.[68] Production resumed two weeks later on November 24, 2020, and continued in December despite Cavill's on-set injury.[citation needed] Filming for the second season wrapped on April 2, 2021.[69]

Filming locations for the second season were all in the UK and included Cathedral Cave and Hodge Close Quarry in the Lake District,[70] Low Force Waterfall in the North Pennines,[71] and Bourne Wood in Farnham.[72]

Filming for the third season began on April 4, 2022,[73] and wrapped in September 2022.[74] Part of the season was filmed at the Krk island in Croatia, with the help of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC).[75] Some of the scenes were filmed at the Fusine Lakes in Tarvisio, Italy, and at Predjama Castle and Nanos, both located in Slovenia.[76]

The fourth season began filming in April 2024 at Longcross Studios in the UK.[77]

Music

edit
The Witcher (Music from the Netflix Original Series)
 
Soundtrack album by
ReleasedJanuary 24, 2020 (2020-01-24)
GenreSoundtrack
Length2:45:00
LabelSony Music

Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli composed the soundtrack for the first season. The duo collaborated with several soloists and artists; the soundtrack features many medieval instruments to match the medieval-inspired setting of the series.[78] More than 60 different instruments from around the world were used to create the soundtrack.[79][80] The original song "Toss a Coin to Your Witcher", composed by Belousova and Ostinelli and sung by Batey in the second episode, became a viral hit shortly after the series's release.[81] Users have created mods to patch the song into the video game adaptions of The Witcher.[82] All violin solos for the series were performed by Lindsay Deutsch.[83]

No.TitleLength
1."Geralt of Rivia"1:52
2."Toss a Coin to Your Witcher" (feat. Joey Batey)3:10
3."Happy Childhoods Make For Dull Company" (feat. Rodion Belousov)3:16
4."The Time of Axe and Sword Is Now" (feat. Declan de Barra, Lindsay Deutsch)4:56
5."They're Alive" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch, Burak Besir)1:41
6."Tomorrow I'll Leave Blaviken For Good"1:33
7."Her Sweet Kiss" (feat. Joey Batey)2:00
8."It's an Ultimatum"3:54
9."Round of Applause" (feat. Rodion Belousov)1:09
10."Marilka That's My Name"2:47
11."I'm Helping the Idiot" (feat. Arngeir Hauksson)2:44
12."The Knight Who Was Taught to Save Dragons" (feat. Rodion Belousov)5:05
13."Ragamuffin"4:28
14."The Last Rose of Cintra" (feat. Declan de Barra)2:23
15."Late Wee Pups Don't Get to Bark" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)2:39
16."You Will Rule This Land Someday"4:31
17."The Fishmonger's Daughter" (feat. Joey Batey)1:16
18."Blaviken Inn" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)1:34
19."Man in Black"4:04
20."The Great Cleansing" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)4:04
21."The Law of Surprise"4:30
22."Battle of Marnadal"4:17
23."Pretty Ballads Hide Bastard Truths" (feat. Rodion Belousov)2:19
24."Giltine the Artist"1:42
25."Everytime You Leave"2:07
26."Rewriting History" (feat. Rodion Belousov)3:54
27."The End's Beginning" (feat. Declan de Barra)2:18
28."Gold Dragons Are the Rarest" (feat. Rodion Belousov)5:49
29."Bonfire" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)2:14
30."Children Are Our Favorite"3:16
31."Do You Actually Have What It Takes"4:52
32."Point Me to Temeria"0:56
33."Djinni Djinn Djinn"2:09
34."Here's Your Destiny"3:48
35."Two Vows Here Tonight"3:02
36."Bread, Breasts and Beer" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)1:50
37."Would You Honor Me With a Dance"2:03
38."Four Marks" (feat. Rodion Belousov)4:17
39."The Pensive Dragon Inn" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)1:28
40."A Gift for the Princess"2:48
41."You're in Brokilon Forest"2:41
42."Today Isn't Your Day Is It"1:38
43."Lovely Rendez-vous à la montagne"2:39
44."Blame Destiny"4:44
45."The White Flame Has Brought Us Together"3:35
46."He's One of the Clean Ones" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)2:24
47."You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful"5:13
48."Yennefer of Vengerberg"3:10
49."Shouldn't You Know When Someone Is Pretending" (feat. Lindsay Deutsch)2:21
50."You'll Have to Fight It Until Dawn"9:04
51."I'm the One with the Wishes"7:33
52."Chaos Is All Around Us"4:29
53."The Curse of the Black Sun"6:50
54."Battle of Sodden"4:01
55."The Song of the White Wolf" (feat. Declan de Barra)3:45
Total length:2:45:00
The Witcher: Season 2 (Soundtrack from the Netflix Original Series)
 
Soundtrack album by
ReleasedDecember 17, 2021 (2021-12-17)
GenreSoundtrack
Length1:42:00
LabelMaisie Music Publishing

In October 2021, it was confirmed that Joseph Trapanese would be scoring the soundtrack for the second season. Trapanese, having previously collaborated with Netflix as the composer for Shadow & Bone, replaced Belousova and Ostinelli.[1] Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich also revealed that new songs performed by Batey would be featured on the soundtrack.[84]

No.TitleLength
1."The Golden One" (feat. Joey Batey)3:23
2."Nilfgaard Attacks"2:38
3."Nivellen"3:28
4."Some Wounds Can't Be Healed"1:31
5."Kaer Morhen"1:43
6."Leshen"6:10
7."Power and Purpose"4:42
8."Aretuza Loses Another"1:35
9."The Pendulum"2:16
10."Witcher Training"2:11
11."Myrapod Chase"3:12
12."Stay With Me"3:11
13."Who Did This to You?"1:46
14."The Key to the Future"1:44
15."Done Dealing in Debts"4:50
16."Burn Butcher Burn" (feat. Joey Batey)2:39
17."Remembering Cintra" (feat. Sonya Belousova, Giona Ostinelli)4:39
18."Elder Blood"2:43
19."Chernobog"2:14
20."Melitele"4:02
21."Fire Fucker"4:53
22."Whoreson Prison Blues" (feat. Joey Batey)2:07
23."Sworn to Protect" (feat. Sonya Belousova, Giona Ostinelli)4:36
24."Elves' Allegiance"1:34
25."I Believe in You"2:33
26."Pain and Desperation"5:20
27."Tell Me What You Want"3:19
28."Basilisks"6:59
29."We're Your Family"3:01
30."You Belong With Us"1:36
31."The Wild Hunt"2:25
32."The White Flame"2:48
Total length:1:42:00
The Witcher: Season 3 (Soundtrack from the Netflix Original Series)
 
Soundtrack album by
ReleasedJuly 27, 2023 (2023-07-27)
GenreSoundtrack
Length2:22:00
LabelSony Music Entertainment

In June 2022, it was confirmed Trapanese would return to score the soundtrack for the third season.[85] Besides new songs performed by Joey Batey, the score features a new song "A Little Sacrifice" performed by Freya Allan and inspired by a short story of the same name from The Sword of Destiny. Many songs also feature the Polish folk metal band Percival Schuttenbach who previously worked on the soundtrack for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Disk 1

No.TitleLength
1."I Importune You" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)1:12
2."A Time of Contempt" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)5:59
3."Shaerrawedd" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)3:10
4."Shaerrawedd Brawl" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)2:08
5."Stay Together"4:22
6."A Mission for You"2:07
7."Changing Destiny is a Weighty Business" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)3:07
8."Extraordinary Things" (feat. Joey Batey)3:19
9."Girl from Cintra" (feat. Sonya Belousova, Giona Ostinelli, Percival Schuttenbach)3:49
10."Vuilpanne" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)3:19
11."Whispers of a Dozen Bounties"4:29
12."Death Itself"1:15
13."Let Me Guess, You Have a Plan?" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)0:31
14."He's a Spoon"1:38
15."Emhyr van Emreis"2:31
16."Lessons in Smiling"1:07
17."Aeschna"1:58
18."She Was Gone" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)3:01
19."You Sure About This?"3:53
20."Alone at Last"1:35
21."All is Not as It Seems" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach, Nathan Armarkwei Laryea, GLOR1A, Josh Weller)3:40
22."War is Brewing"3:35
23."The Melange (A Witcher Tango)" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)4:31
24."Serious Accusations"4:01
25."Should Have Chosen a Side"1:38
Total length:1:12:00

Disk 2

No.TitleLength
1."Break the Bind"2:36
2."Gambit" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)2:22
3."Failure of Judgement" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)2:59
4."He Always Finds Us" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)2:43
5."My Daughter"1:32
6."I Thought You Were Dead"2:06
7."Arrogance Will Be Your Undoing"3:55
8."Tor Lara" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)1:31
9."Korath"4:16
10."A Little Sacrifice" (feat. Freya Allan, Percival Schuttenbach)2:52
11."Little Horse" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)1:16
12."Water" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)2:16
13."Dust and Oblivion"3:28
14."You Will Change Everything" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)4:14
15."Enchanted Flowers" (feat. Joey Batey, Percival Schuttenbach)3:01
16."Brokilon"2:11
17."Skellige"1:39
18."Fine Work"1:35
19."Chaos Has Consequences" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)4:47
20."Mend What is Broken" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)4:52
21."Long Live the King"1:55
22."Auspicious Day"2:15
23."Rats" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)3:05
24."Fair Fight" (feat. Percival Schuttenbach)3:36
25."The Ride of the Witcher" (feat. Joey Batey, Percival Schuttenbach)3:23
Total length:1:10:00

Marketing

edit

Netflix released the first teaser for the series at San Diego Comic-Con on July 19, 2019.[86][87] The first full trailer was revealed at Lucca Comics & Games on October 31, 2019.[88][89] Netflix released a final trailer on December 12, 2019.[90] On October 29, 2021, Netflix released the official trailer for season 2.[91][92][93]

Release

edit

In April 2019, Netflix's Ted Sarandos told investors in an earnings call that the series would be released in late 2019.[94] The series premiered on December 20, 2019.[89] The second season premiered on December 17, 2021.[95] The third season was released in two volumes, with the first five episodes premiering on June 29 and the last three episodes on July 27, 2023, respectively.[32]

Specials

edit

On August 26, 2020, a making-of about the first season of the show titled Making The Witcher was released on Netflix.[96] On September 2, 2020, the making-of series The Witcher: A Look Inside the Episodes premiered on Netflix.[97]

With the release of the second season, Netflix released on December 17, 2021, Making The Witcher: Season 2,[98] The Witcher Bestiary Season 1, Part 1,[99] The Witcher Bestiary Season 1, Part 2,[100] The Characters of the Continent,[101] and The Witcher: Fireplace.[102][103]

On July 27, 2023, along with the third season's second-part premiere, Netflix released the making-of special Making The Witcher: Season 3.[104]

Reception

edit

Critical reception

edit
Critical response of The Witcher
SeasonRotten TomatoesMetacritic
168% (91 reviews)[105]54 (18 reviews)[106]
295% (63 reviews)[107]69 (23 reviews)[108]
379% (47 reviews)[109]71 (14 reviews)[110]
65 (7 reviews)[111]

Season 1

edit

For the first season, Rotten Tomatoes collected 91 reviews and identified 68% of them as positive, with an average rating of 6.26/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Though the world of The Witcher at times feels only half-formed, Henry Cavill brings brawny charisma to a series teeming with subversive fantasy elements and dark humor."[105] Metacritic calculated a weighted average score of 54 out of 100 based on 17 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[106]

In a positive review of the first season, Erik Kain of Forbes wrote, "If you're looking for an original dark fantasy with some horror elements, some bare skin and plenty of blood and gore (and monsters) look no further",[112] while James Whitbrook of io9 said, "if you are willing to sit through those trudging opening episodes, punctuated by a cool fight here or an intriguing character scene there, The Witcher slowly but surely finds itself a fantastical slice of bloody, schlocky fun."[113] Conversely, Entertainment Weekly critic Darren Franich said, "My destiny is to never watch this borefest ever again", awarding the first season an F rating.[114] Franich drew criticism when he confessed to watching only the first, second, and fifth episodes.[115] Raisa Bruner from Time gave a positive review to the show and commented, "Each episode gets stronger as the season progresses, and ultimately satisfies the fantasy itch."[116] Scott Bryan from the BBC, was more negative towards the show by criticizing it for relying too much on the gameplays, and how they didn't know how to properly adapt it into a TV show.[117] Critic William Hughes from The A.V. Club commented in a positive review: "The Witcher is by no means perfect; even ignoring the earlier structural flaws, its efforts at comedy often come off sounding a bit too modern for the rest of its setting, and the characters' tendency to monologue to any unspeaking object or person they can find—horses, mute companions, literal dead babies—verges on comedic. But when the worst thing you can say about a series is that every episode ends up being better than the one that preceded it, that leaves an exciting amount of room to grow."[118]

The Witcher author Andrzej Sapkowski commented favorably on the show, stating, "I was more than happy with Henry Cavill's appearance as The Witcher. He's a real professional. Just as Viggo Mortensen gave his face to Aragorn (in The Lord of the Rings), so Henry gave his to Geralt — and it shall be forever so." Sapkowski added, "I shall be happy if the viewers — and readers — take anything away, anything that shall enrich them in some way. Also, I sincerely hope to leave the viewers — and readers — hot. In every sense. Not tepid, not lukewarm."[119] Author Tom Long from The Detroit News praised the series for its action sequences and performances, and gave the show a B rating.[120] Matthew Aguilar from ComicBook.com gave a positive response by rating the show with 4 out of 5: "The Witcher brings the world's rich characters, sharp wit, and stylish action to life in a truly delightful way, and whether you're a fan of the novels or the games, you're going to find something to love."[121] Critic Daniel D'Addario was more negative with the show and commented: "This is a show with moments of drama and of gruesome violence cut through with a glancing humor that too often feels tossed-off and out-of-place in the world the show has created."[122]

Season 2

edit

The second season received positive reviews. Rotten Tomatoes reports a 95% approval rating with an average rating of 7.9/10, based on 62 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Witcher's second season expands on its first in all the best ways—and most importantly, it remains a whole lot of fun."[107] Metacritic calculated a weighted average score of 69 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[108]

Critic Sheena Scott from Forbes favorably commented: "Throughout the episodes, characters repeatedly point out their resemblance—a similar attitude, the same hairstyle—to keep on reminding the viewers of their daughter-father bond. But as the ending of Season 2 indicates, it looks like it is this very bond that may be put into jeopardy in the next season."[123] Angie Han from The Hollywood Reporter, praised the series for being an improvement over its previous season, although it may not be perfect. She commented: "In its second outing, The Witcher feels confident enough to open itself up to that whole array of feelings."[124] In a more negative review, Roxana Hadadi from Vulture stated, "In its second season, The Witcher is most engaging when exploring the alliances and allegiances between Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri and when using those three to consider Nivellen's insistence that 'Monsters are born of deeds alone. Unforgivable ones.' But in its attempt to build a bigger world, the series falls prey to more fantasy tropes than it masters."[125] Author Leigh Butler deemed the second season an improvement over its previous season, praising its deeper themes, better storyline, performances, and finally approaching its potential, and stated, "Season 2 (so far) is better, and working its way toward potentially great. When it comes down to it, there is really only one thing any story needs to accomplish, and The Witcher has accomplished it."[126]

James Whitbrook from io9 said, "The new focus on character-building might mean less focus on specific short stories from Sapkowski's collection of Witcher tales, but it makes the show's world feel more expansive and nuanced in ways it didn't until late in the show's first season, while still keeping things centered on the characters as the sense of scale expands."[127] Nick Schagerw stated in a negative review, "Even by typical fantasy-genre standards, the show indulges in so much make-believe terminology, and at such an incessant clip, that it quickly proves easier to give up trying to make heads or tails of every detail and instead just go with the wonky narrative flow",[128] while Allison Keene from Paste commented in a positive review, "More than anything though, The Witcher's excellent Season 2 is a deeper dive into a rich world that shines in its focus on Ciri and Geralt's relationship, and how that connection influences everything around them. Though there are plenty of things to quibble over from book to screen (or from videogame screen, although the show is expressly pulled from the page), The Witcher is perhaps best viewed and accepted as a fresh translation of an old fable."[129] Critic Carly Lane from Collider gave positive feedback: "By comparison, Season 2 is finally settling into its stride and has an even better sense of what works while discarding more of what didn't — although there are still the occasional unannounced time-jumps forward, or surprise character introductions, that demand attentiveness rather than any distracted background viewing."[130]

Season 3

edit

For the third season, Rotten Tomatoes reports a 79% approval rating with an average rating of 7.1/10, based on 47 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Capably shouldered by Henry Cavill's gruff charm, The Witcher's plotty third season pays a fittingly fond farewell to this particular Geralt of Rivia."[109] Metacritic calculated a weighted average score of 71 out of 100 based on 14 critics indicating "generally favorable reviews" for the first five episodes[110] and a score of 65 out of 100 based on 7 critics indicating "generally favorable reviews" for the last three.[111]

Audience viewership

edit

According to Parrot Analytics, The Witcher, in its US debut, was the third most "in demand" original streaming series, behind Stranger Things and The Mandalorian.[131] Parrot's process measures "demand expressions", which is "its globally standardized TV-demand measurement unit that reflects the desire, engagement, and viewership of a series weighted by importance."[132] On December 31, 2019, Parrot Analytics reported that The Witcher became the most-in-demand TV series in the world, across all platforms.[133]

On December 30, 2019, Netflix issued a number of official lists, including the Most Popular TV Shows of 2019. The series was among the most viewed in the U.S. market, where The Witcher was ranked second among series.[134] On January 21, 2020, Netflix announced that the first season had been viewed by over 76 million viewers on its service within its first month of release.[135] Netflix had recently changed its viewership metric, from 70% of an episode under the previous metric, down to two minutes under the new metric. The new metric gives viewing figures 35% higher on average than the previous one.[136] The 76 million views in its first month based on the new metric (at least two minutes or more) is the largest for a Netflix series launch since the introduction of the new viewership metric.[137][138]

The Witcher was, until the release of Bridgerton and Squid Game, Netflix's most watched original series launch at the time, with 541 million hours viewed in the first 28 days of release, and season two achieved 484 million hours watched.[139]

Upon the release of the first batch of episodes for the third season, it was reported that the show had experienced a 30% drop in viewership compared to the previous season.[140]

Sales of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt in December 2019 were 554% greater than those from December 2018, attributed to renewed interest in the series due to the show.[141]

Accolades

edit
Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2020 British Society of Cinematographers Best Cinematography in a Television Drama Gavin Struthers Nominated [142]
Dragon Awards Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series Lauren Schmidt Hissrich Nominated [143]
Webby Awards Video – Trailer People's Voice Lucy Bond, Jed Finkelstein, Oleg Loginov, and Rebecca Salt Won [144]
2021 BMI Film & TV Awards BMI Streaming Series Award Sonya Belousova Won [145]
Hollywood Music In Media Awards Best Main Title Theme – TV Show/Limited Series Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli Nominated [146]
Best Original Song in a TV Show/Limited Series Sonya Belousova, Giona Ostinelli, and Jenny Klein Nominated
Saturn Awards Best Fantasy Television Series The Witcher Nominated [147]
Best Actor on Television Henry Cavill Nominated
Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Television Series Freya Allan Nominated
2022 Art Directors Guild Awards Excellence in Production Design for a One-Hour Period or Fantasy Single-Camera Series Andrew Laws (for "A Grain of Truth") Nominated [148]
British Academy Television Craft Awards Best Make-Up & Hair Design Barrie Gower, Sarah Gower and Deb Watson Won [149]
Best Sound: Fiction James Bain, Robert Farr, Matthew Collinge, Matt Davies, Alyn Sclosa, and Rob Prynne Nominated
Best Special, Visual & Graphic Effects Oliver Cubbage, Dadi Einarsson, Jet Omoshebi, Aleksandar Pejic, Stefano Pepin, and Gavin Round Won
Costume Designers Guild Awards Excellence in Sci-Fi/Fantasy Television Lucinda Wright (for "Family") Nominated [150]
Critics' Choice Super Awards Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Series The Witcher Nominated [151]
Best Actor in a Science Fiction/Fantasy Series Henry Cavill Nominated
Golden Reel Awards Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Series 1 Hour – Comedy or Drama – Sound Effects and Foley Matthew Collinge, Rob Turner, Alyn Sclosa, Rob Prynne, Adam Oakley, Rob Weatherall, Zoe Freed, and Rebecca Heathcote (for "A Grain of Truth") Won [152]
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Series 1 Hour – Comedy or Drama – Music Arabella Winter (for "A Grain of Truth") Nominated
Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards Best Actor in a Streaming Series, Drama Henry Cavill Nominated [153]
Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards Best Special Makeup Effects in Television, Limited/Miniseries, or New Media Series Barrie Gower and Deb Watson Nominated [154]
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes Lucinda Wright and Rebecca Jempson (for "Family") Nominated [155]
Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Season or a Movie Dadi Einarsson, Gavin Round, Bruno Baron, Matthias Bjarnason, Sebastien Francoeur, Aleksandar Pejic, Oliver Cubbage, Mateusz Tokarz, and Stefano Pepin Nominated
Outstanding Stunt Coordination for a Drama Series, Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Adam Horton Nominated
Saturn Awards Best Fantasy Series (Streaming) The Witcher Nominated [156]
Visual Effects Society Awards Outstanding Animated Character in an Episode or Real-Time Project Hannes Faupel, Stéphane Paccolat, Ivan Cadena Ayala, and Laurent Fortin (for " Leshy Eskel; Tree Branch Creature") Nominated [157]
[158]
Marko Chulev, Rasely Ma, Mike Beaulieu, and Robin Witzsche (for "Nivellen the Cursed Man") Won
2024 British Academy Television Craft Awards Best Sound: Fiction Matthew Collinge, James Bain, Robert Farr, Tom Melling, Matt Davies, Alyn Sclosa Nominated [159]
Best Special, Visual and Graphic Effects Tim Crosbie, Caimin Bourne, Jet Omoshebi, Dan Weir, Cinesite, David Stephens Won

Prequels

edit

Films

edit

In January 2020, Netflix announced an animated spin-off film titled The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, focusing on the origin story of Geralt's mentor and fellow witcher Vesemir. Lauren Schmidt Hissrich and Beau DeMayo worked on the film, with production by Studio Mir.[160] It was released on August 23, 2021.[161]

On September 25, 2021, a second animated feature film was announced.[31][162] In November 2023, it was announced that the film would be titled The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep and would be based on the short story "A Little Sacrifice" from Sword of Destiny. Studio Mir will return to produce the film, which will be written by series writers Mike Ostrowski and Rae Benjamin, produced by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, and directed by Kang Hei Chul who served as a storyboard artist on Nightmare of the Wolf. It will be released in February 2025.[163][164]

Series

edit

A live-action prequel limited series, The Witcher: Blood Origin, was announced by Netflix in July 2020. Set 1200 years before Geralt's time, it shows the origin of the Witchers. Schmidt Hissrich developed the prequel as executive producer, and Declan de Barra served as showrunner.[165] In July 2021, Michelle Yeoh and Sophia Brown joined the cast. Filming began in August 2021 in the United Kingdom,[166][167] with Lenny Henry, Mirren Mack, Nathaniel Curtis, Dylan Moran, Jacob Collins-Levy, Lizzie Annis, Huw Novelli, Francesca Mills, Amy Murray, Zach Wyatt, Minnie Driver, Aidan O'Callaghan and Mark Rowley joining the cast.[168] The series premiered on December 25, 2022, and consists of four episodes.[169]

Notes

edit
  1. ^ Original title of the book series in Polish: Wiedźmin. Previously the name has had a number of different translations, including Hexer and Witcher, but following the release of the video games the word Witcher was selected as the standard translation of Wiedźmin into English.

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "Joseph Trapanese Tapped as Composer of Netflix's 'The Witcher' Season 2". Film Music Reporter. October 29, 2021. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  2. ^ Skrebels, Joe (May 17, 2017). "Netflix to Produce The Witcher TV Series". IGN. Archived from the original on September 23, 2019. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
  3. ^ "We started production of the series based on "The Witcher" in coop. with @NetflixUS and SeanDanielCompany". Twitter. May 17, 2017. Archived from the original on May 17, 2017. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d Lodderhose, Diana (May 17, 2017). "Netflix To Produce 'The Witcher' TV Series". Deadline. Archived from the original on February 28, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  5. ^ Točíková Vojteková, Zuzana (February 21, 2019). "Slovak Tax Incentives Lure British and US TV Series to Shoot in Slovakia". Filmneweurope. Archived from the original on February 21, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  6. ^ "The Witcher". stillking.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  7. ^ "Netflix Reveals The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf Anime Cast and Characters". IGN. July 21, 2021. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rougeau, Michael (December 23, 2019). "The Witcher Books: Reading Order And Which Stories Inspired The Netflix Show". Gamespot. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  9. ^ "Netflix | The Witcher | Map of the Continent". www.witchernetflix.com. Archived from the original on May 23, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  10. ^ a b Khan, Rabab (August 8, 2021). "The Witcher Boss Reveals Short Story That Inspired Season 2 Premiere". GameRant. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  11. ^ Dailey, Kim (November 14, 2020). "Everything We Know About The Witcher Season 2 (Based On The Books)". TheGamer.com. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  12. ^ "Watch Making The Witcher: Season 3 | Netflix Official Site". www.netflix.com. Archived from the original on August 11, 2023. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  13. ^ Boog, Jason (April 12, 2019). "The Netflix Literary Connection". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on April 20, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  14. ^ "The Witcher Saga: has Netflix found its Game of Thrones?". The Telegraph. May 17, 2017. Archived from the original on June 22, 2018. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  15. ^ Purchese, Robert (May 18, 2017). "The Witcher Netflix series begins production". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  16. ^ Holloway, Daniel (December 8, 2018). "Lauren Schmidt Hissrich to Adapt 'The Witcher' for Netflix (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on June 3, 2018. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
  17. ^ Arif, Shabana (April 23, 2018). "The Witcher TV Show Will Be 8 Episodes Long, Likely Released in 2020". IGN. Archived from the original on September 8, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  18. ^ "Andrzej Sapkowski: Como o Este e o Oeste, "a adaptação e o original nunca se irão encontrar" – JPN" [Andrzej Sapkowski: Like the East and the West, "the adaptation and the original will never meet"]. jpn.up.pt (in Portuguese). December 18, 2017. Archived from the original on May 4, 2018. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
  19. ^ Barragan, Karen (May 17, 2017). "The Witcher Saga coming to Netflix". Netflix Media Center. Archived from the original on May 20, 2017. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
  20. ^ @LHissrich (April 13, 2018). "Na zdrowie!" (Tweet). Retrieved May 5, 2018 – via Twitter.
  21. ^ Lauren S. Hissrich [@LHissrich] (May 8, 2018). "Then rest easy. There are several Polish people on the creative team — starting with Mr Sapkowski" (Tweet). Retrieved May 8, 2018 – via Twitter.
  22. ^ Marc, Christopher (August 21, 2018). "Netflix's 'The Witcher' Series Adds 'The Gunman/American Assassin' Production Designer". Geeks WorldWide. Archived from the original on March 24, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  23. ^ Allen, Ben (July 1, 2019). "When is The Witcher released on Netflix? Who's in the cast, and what's going to happen?". Radio Times. Archived from the original on July 1, 2019.
  24. ^ Schwartz, Ryan (November 13, 2019). "The Witcher Scores Early Season 2 Renewal at Netflix". TVLine. Archived from the original on November 19, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  25. ^ "'The Witcher' Renewed for Season 2 at Netflix Ahead of Series Premiere". Variety. December 26, 2019. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  26. ^ "The Witcher: Season 2's Working Title Revealed". CBR. June 29, 2020. Archived from the original on June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  27. ^ Otterson, Joe (November 13, 2019). "'The Witcher' Renewed for Season 2 at Netflix Ahead of Series Premiere". Variety. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
  28. ^ White, Peter (April 20, 2021). "'The Witcher', 'You' & 'Cobra Kai' Will Return To Netflix In Q4 2021". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  29. ^ "Final Q1 2021 Shareholder Letter" (PDF). Netflix. April 20, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  30. ^ Iannucci, Rebecca (July 9, 2021). "The Witcher Sets December Premiere for Season 2 — Watch Teaser Trailer". TVLine. Archived from the original on December 18, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
  31. ^ a b Earl, William (September 25, 2021). "'The Witcher' Renewed for Season 3, Expands Universe With New Projects". Variety. Archived from the original on September 25, 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  32. ^ a b Franklin, McKinley (April 25, 2023). "'The Witcher' Trailer, Release Date: Watch Henry Cavill's Final Season". Variety. Archived from the original on May 2, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  33. ^ Porter, Rick (April 18, 2024). "The Witcher to End With Season 5 at Netflix". The Hollywood Reporter. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  34. ^ Abdulbaki, Mae (December 23, 2019). "How The Witcher Was Inspired By Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk". CinemaBlend. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  35. ^ "The Witcher's confusing timelines explained". Gamespot. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019.
  36. ^ Hurley, Laura (December 5, 2019). "Why Netflix's The Witcher Doesn't Focus On Just Henry Cavill's Geralt In Season 1". CinemaBlend. Archived from the original on December 28, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  37. ^ Russell, Bradley (December 23, 2019). "The Witcher Netflix showrunner teases season 2: "There's a stronger drive to the story"". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  38. ^ "'The Witcher' Showrunner Teases Season 2: Hello Vesemir, Goodbye Multiple Timelines (Video)". TheWrap. June 12, 2020. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  39. ^ Whitbrook, James (September 4, 2018). "Henry Cavill Will Lead Netflix's Witcher Series as Geralt of Rivia". io9. Archived from the original on September 5, 2018. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
  40. ^ Tassi, Paul (September 4, 2018). "Netflix's 'The Witcher' Series Finds Its Geralt In Henry Cavill". Forbes. Archived from the original on September 5, 2018. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
  41. ^ Elderkin, Beth (July 23, 2019). "Here's Why The Witcher Auditioned 207 Other Guys For Geralt When Henry Cavill Was Right There". Gizmodo. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  42. ^ Chalk, Andy (January 3, 2020). "Henry Cavill rejects your notion of a 'gaming man cave'". PC Gamer.com. Archived from the original on April 19, 2021. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  43. ^ Petski, Denise (October 10, 2018). "'The Witcher': Netflix Fantasy Drama Series Casts Its Females Leads Ciri & Yennefer". Deadline. Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  44. ^ a b Petski, Denise (October 31, 2018). "'The Witcher': First Look At Henry Cavill As Geralt Of Rivia; Netflix Rounds Out Cast As Production Begins". Deadline. Archived from the original on November 1, 2018. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  45. ^ a b Shanley, Patrick (February 28, 2020). "'The Witcher' Casts 'Killing Eve' Alum in Key Role". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 29, 2020. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  46. ^ Petski, Denise (February 21, 2020). "'The Witcher' Adds Seven To Season 2 Cast As Production Begins". Deadline. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  47. ^ "Netflix confirms The Witcher's new cast: Francesca, Nivellen, Eskel and more". Redanian Intelligence. February 21, 2020. Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  48. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (September 26, 2020). "'The Witcher' Recasts Eskel Role With Basil Eidenbenz For Season 2 After Thue Ersted Rasmussen Exits Netflix Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  49. ^ "The Witcher casts Queen Meve of Lyria and Rivia". Redanian Intelligence. November 27, 2020. Archived from the original on November 27, 2020. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  50. ^ "Netflix's 'The Witcher' Casts 7 More Actors for Key Roles in Season 2 (Exclusive)". www.hollywoodreporter.com. The Hollywood Reporter. March 22, 2021. Archived from the original on April 19, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  51. ^ Moreau, Jordan (April 14, 2022). "The Witcher Season 3 Casts Robbie Amell, Shang-Chi Star Meng'er Zhang and More". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  52. ^ "The Witcher season 3 adds six new cast members". www.digitalspy.com. Digital Spy. July 11, 2022. Archived from the original on July 14, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  53. ^ "Liam Hemsworth Is Picking Up Geralt's Sword for 'The Witcher' Season 4". Netflix. October 29, 2022. Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  54. ^ Hibberd, James (January 12, 2024). "The Witcher Season 4 Casts Laurence Fishburne as Fan-Favorite Character". The Hollywood Reporter. Penske Media Corporation.
  55. ^ Riley, Jenelle (July 24, 2023). "'Wednesday' and 'The Witcher' Casting Director Sophie Holland". Variety. Archived from the original on July 31, 2023. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  56. ^ Lauren S. Hissrich [@LHissrich] (April 21, 2018). "WE'LL BE SHOOTING IN EASTERN EUROPE. Yes! This show couldn't exist anyplace else. Period. Also, I just spent ten days surrounded by Slavic eye-candy. I MUST come back, soon" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2019 – via Twitter.
  57. ^ "The Witcher Filming Locations Guide: Where was The Witcher filmed?". Atlas of Wonders. December 26, 2019. Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2020. The Witcher was filmed on location in Hungary, Austria, the Canary Islands (Spain) and Poland.
  58. ^ Navarro, Nora (March 2, 2019). "'The Witcher' se rueda en Gran Canaria" ['The Witcher' is shot in Gran Canaria]. LA Provincia (in Spanish). Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  59. ^ a b "The Witcher Filming Locations Guide: Where was The Witcher filmed?". Atlas of Wonders. December 26, 2019. Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
  60. ^ Zagalski, Jakub (November 13, 2019). ""Wiedźmin": byliśmy na planie hitu Netfliksa. "Od początku chcieliśmy kręcić w Polsce"". teleshow.wp.pl (in Polish). Archived from the original on November 14, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  61. ^ Haas, Dylan (May 31, 2019). "Netflix's The Witcher Series Officially Wraps Production". Paste. Archived from the original on June 4, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  62. ^ Kanter, Jake (March 16, 2020). "'The Witcher' Becomes First Major TV Drama Made In The UK To Be Halted By Coronavirus". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  63. ^ Thorne, Will (March 16, 2020). "'Game of Thrones' Star Kristofer Hivju Tests Positive for Coronavirus". Variety. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  64. ^ Sweney, Mark (May 31, 2020). "The Batman among movies given go-ahead for restart of UK filming". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on May 7, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  65. ^ "Netflix's The Witcher: Season 2 Begins Pre-Production". CBR. July 14, 2020. Archived from the original on July 14, 2020. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  66. ^ "The Witcher Season 2 Officially Resumes Production". Screen Rant. August 12, 2020. Archived from the original on August 22, 2020. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  67. ^ "'The Witcher' Season 2 Resumes Filming, But It's Going To Be Massively Delayed". Forbes. August 2, 2020. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
  68. ^ "Netflix's 'The Witcher' Halts Production Following Multiple Positive COVID Tests". November 7, 2020. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  69. ^ Ramachandran, Naman (April 2, 2021). "Netflix's 'The Witcher' Season Two Wraps U.K. Shoot". Variety. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  70. ^ HeroOfRodden (October 17, 2020). "The Witcher Season 2 filming inside a quarry in the Lake District with Geralt and Lambert". Redanian Intelligence. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  71. ^ "Behind the Scenes on The Witcher | Keswick Adventures News". Keswick Adventures. December 22, 2021. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  72. ^ "The Witcher S2 filmed in 15 key UK locations". www.kftv.com. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  73. ^ Petski, Denise (April 4, 2022). "'The Witcher': On-Set Photo Unveiled As Production Begins On Season 3 Of Netflix Series". Deadline. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
  74. ^ "The Witcher Season 3 Wraps Filming With a Message From Henry Cavill". Redanian Intelligence. September 9, 2022. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
  75. ^ "Croatian island in new season of 'The Witcher' just released on Netflix". Croatia Week. June 29, 2023. Archived from the original on June 29, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  76. ^ Ulivieri, Federica (April 10, 2022). "Una famosissima serie Netflix sarà girata anche in Friuli". Friuli Oggi - Il quotidiano del Friuli | Notizie dal Friuli (in Italian). Archived from the original on August 11, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  77. ^ Geisinger, Gabriella (April 9, 2024). "The Witcher begins production at UK's Longcross Studios". KFTV.com.
  78. ^ "The Music of Netflix's 'The Witcher'". Composer Spitfire Audio. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  79. ^ "Keeping Score with Sonya Belousova & Giona Ostinelli (The Witcher)". Medium. June 6, 2020. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  80. ^ Yunis, Brooke (February 9, 2020). "BWW Interview: Composers Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli Talk Netflix's The Witcher". Broadway World. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  81. ^ France, Lisa Respers (January 1, 2020). "'The Witcher' has us singing 'Toss a Coin to Your Witcher'". CNN. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  82. ^ Good, Owen (January 5, 2020). "The Witcher 3 mods bring Henry Cavill and 'Toss a Coin' to life in the game". Polygon. Archived from the original on January 7, 2020. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  83. ^ "The Witcher: what to expect from Sonya Belousova's soundtrack". Classic FM. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  84. ^ "The Witcher adds Shadow & Bone composer for Season 2". Redanian Intelligence. September 25, 2021. Archived from the original on January 3, 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  85. ^ taddix (June 17, 2022). "The Witcher Season 3 Composer Confirmed". Redanian Intelligence. Archived from the original on July 30, 2023. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  86. ^ Netflix (July 19, 2019). "The Witcher | Official Teaser | Netflix". YouTube. Archived from the original on July 20, 2019. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  87. ^ Morton, Lauren (July 19, 2019). "The first trailer for Netflix's Witcher series is here". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on July 20, 2019. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  88. ^ "Netflix arriva a LC&G 2019". December 13, 2019. Archived from the original on October 17, 2019. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  89. ^ a b Gonzalez, Oscar (October 31, 2019). "Netflix's The Witcher begins streaming in December". Cnet. Archived from the original on October 31, 2019. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  90. ^ "THE WITCHER FINAL TRAILER NETFLIX". www.youtube.com. YouTube. December 12, 2019. Archived from the original on December 12, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  91. ^ Scroll Staff (October 29, 2021). "Watch: The trailer for 'The Witcher' season 2 is out". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  92. ^ Gartenberg, Chaim (October 29, 2021). "Geralt fights giant monsters, and Jaskier befriends rats in new Witcher season 2 trailer". The Verge. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  93. ^ Goslin, Austen (October 29, 2021). "The Witcher season 2 trailer is filled with monsters". Polygon. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  94. ^ Crecente, Brian (April 17, 2019). "'The Witcher' Netflix Show Hits This Fall". Variety. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  95. ^ Austen, Goslin (October 29, 2021). "The Witcher season 2 trailer is filled with monsters". Polygon. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  96. ^ "Making The Witcher: A Behind-the-Scenes Special Now Streaming on Netflix – IGN". August 26, 2020. Archived from the original on September 3, 2020. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
  97. ^ "The Witcher: A Look Inside the Episodes Now Streaming on Netflix – IGN". September 2, 2020. Archived from the original on September 3, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  98. ^ "Making The Witcher: Season 2". bbfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  99. ^ "The Witcher Bestiary Season 1, Part 1". bbfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  100. ^ "The Witcher Bestiary Season 1, Part 2". bbfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  101. ^ "The Characters Of The Continent". bbfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  102. ^ "The Witcher: Fireplace". bbfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  103. ^ Munro, Stefani (December 20, 2021). "Does Netflix have a virtual fireplace?". Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  104. ^ "Making The Witcher: Season 3". www.bbfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on July 30, 2023. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  105. ^ a b "The Witcher: Season 1 (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on December 18, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  106. ^ a b "The Witcher – Season 1 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  107. ^ a b "The Witcher: Season 2 (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  108. ^ a b "The Witcher – Season 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  109. ^ a b "The Witcher: Season 3 (2023)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on September 5, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  110. ^ a b "The Witcher – Season 3 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  111. ^ a b "The Witcher – Season 3.5 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 3, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  112. ^ "'The Witcher' Netflix TV Series Review: The Good, The Bad And The Monstrous". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 21, 2019. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
  113. ^ "The Witcher Takes Way Too Damn Long to Get Interesting, But It Gets There". io9. December 20, 2019. Archived from the original on December 3, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
  114. ^ "Netflix's The Witcher is nakedly terrible: Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on December 21, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  115. ^ Garbone, Gina (December 22, 2019). "Netflix's The Witcher Showrunner Had The Best Response To Bad Reviews". CinemaBlend. Archived from the original on December 27, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  116. ^ Brunner, Raisa (April 27, 2021). "These Are the Best Fantasy TV Show Adaptations to Watch Now". Time. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  117. ^ Bryan, Scott (July 15, 2020). "The Witcher: What the Must Watch reviewers think". BBC. Archived from the original on January 7, 2020. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  118. ^ Hughes, William (December 20, 2019). "Netflix's The Witcher is a lot more fun once it stops pretending it's the next Game Of Thrones". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on June 11, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  119. ^ "How The Witcher Author Feels About Henry Cavill's New Netflix Series". CinemaBlend. December 21, 2019. Archived from the original on December 22, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  120. ^ Long, Tom (December 20, 2019). "Review: Witches, monsters, castles, once again". The Detroit News. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  121. ^ Aguilar, Matthew (December 20, 2019). "The Witcher Review: Compelling Characters Will Entrance New and Old Fans Alike". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  122. ^ D'Addario, Daniel (December 20, 2019). "'The Witcher' on Netflix: TV Review". Variety. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  123. ^ Scott, Sheena (December 30, 2021). "'The Witcher' Season 2 Review: On Loss And Monsters". Forbes. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  124. ^ Han, Angie (December 16, 2021). "Netflix's 'The Witcher' Season 2: TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  125. ^ Hadadi, Roxana (December 16, 2021). "The Witcher Spreads Itself Thin in Season Two". Vulture. Archived from the original on January 5, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  126. ^ Butler, Leigh (December 17, 2021). "6 Ways The Witcher's Second Season Improves Upon the First". Time. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  127. ^ Whitbrook, James (December 10, 2021). "The Witcher Season 2 Is a Bigger, Better, and Witchier Witcher". io9. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  128. ^ Schager, Nick (December 10, 2021). "'The Witcher' Season 2's Inexcusable Lack of Sex and Henry Cavill Bathtub Scenes". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  129. ^ Keene, Allison (December 9, 2021). "The Witcher Season 2: Ciri Takes Center Stage in This Engrossing New Chapter". Paste. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  130. ^ Lane, Carly (December 10, 2021). "'The Witcher' Season 2 Narrows in Scope and Offers a Found Family to Its Own Benefit | Review". Collider. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  131. ^ "Netflix's 'The Witcher' is one of the biggest shows in the US despite poor reviews from critics". Business Insider. December 28, 2019. Archived from the original on April 1, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  132. ^ "Analysts Say Netflix's 'The Witcher' Was The Third Biggest Streaming Original In Its US Debut". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  133. ^ "Netflix's 'The Witcher' dethroned 'The Mandalorian' as the biggest TV series in the world". Business Insider. December 31, 2019. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  134. ^ "'Stranger Things 3,' 'The Witcher,' 'When They See Us' Among Netflix's Most Popular TV Shows in 2019". Variety. December 30, 2019. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
  135. ^ Hayes, Dade (January 21, 2020). "Netflix Calls 'The Witcher' Biggest New Show, Reveals Viewership Stats For 'You' & '6 Underground' As It Explains Ratings Methods". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  136. ^ Spangler, Todd (January 21, 2020). "'The Witcher' on Track to Be Netflix's Biggest TV Show Premiere Ever, Company Claims". Variety. Archived from the original on January 26, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  137. ^ Gartenberg, Chaim (January 21, 2020). "Netflix reveals that 76 million people watched at least two minutes of The Witcher". The Verge. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  138. ^ "Netflix's New Ratings Math Sacrifices Clarity for Flashy Numbers". The Hollywood Reporter. January 23, 2020. Archived from the original on January 24, 2020. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  139. ^ Clark, Travis (January 18, 2022). "Netflix's 12 biggest TV shows of all time, including 'The Witcher' and 'Squid Game'". Business Insider. Archived from the original on January 17, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
  140. ^ Mears, Hayden (July 14, 2023). "Is The Witcher Season 3 Having Viewership Issues?". IGN. Ziff Davis Media Inc. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  141. ^ Parlock, Joe (February 14, 2020). "The Witcher 3 sales were up 554% thanks to the Netflix show". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on March 24, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  142. ^ "BSC Awards". BSC. Archived from the original on June 11, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  143. ^ "2020 Dragon Award Ballot". Dragon Awards. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  144. ^ "The Witcher – Main Trailer". The Webby Awards. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  145. ^ "BMI Streaming Series Award announcement". Twitter. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  146. ^ "2020 Music In Visual Media Nominations". Hollywood Music in Media Awards. HMMA. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  147. ^ Hipes, Patrick (March 4, 2021). "Saturn Awards Nominations: 'Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker', 'Tenet', 'Walking Dead', 'Outlander' Lead List". Deadline. Archived from the original on March 4, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  148. ^ Tangcay, Jazz (January 24, 2022). "Art Directors Guild 2022 Nominations Headed by 'Nightmare Alley,' 'Cruella,' 'No Time to Die,' 'In the Heights'". Variety. Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  149. ^ "BAFTA Television 2022: The Nominations and Winners". Bafta. March 29, 2022. Archived from the original on March 30, 2022. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
  150. ^ Hipes, Patrick (January 26, 2022). "Costume Designers Guild Awards Nominees Include 'House Of Gucci', 'Cruella', 'Zola'". Deadline. Archived from the original on January 26, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  151. ^ "Winners Announced for the 2nd Annual Critics Choice Super Awards". criticschoice.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2022.
  152. ^ Pedersen, Erik (March 14, 2022). "Golden Reel Awards: 'Dune', 'West Side Story', 'Nightmare Alley', 'Succession' & "The Witcher' Among Winners – Full List". deadline.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  153. ^ Schneider, Michael (July 7, 2022). "'Severance,' 'Ted Lasso' Lead Streaming Nominees for 2nd Annual HCA TV Awards". Variety. Archived from the original on July 8, 2022. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  154. ^ Tangcay, Jazz (January 11, 2022). "'Suicide Squad,' 'Coming 2 America' and 'Eyes of Tammy Faye' Lead Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Nominations (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on January 11, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  155. ^ Moreau, Jordan; Schneider, Michael (July 12, 2022). "Emmys 2022: The Complete Nominations List". variety.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  156. ^ Tinoco, Armando (August 12, 2022). "Saturn Awards Nominations: 'The Batman', 'Nightmare Alley', 'Spider-Man', 'Better Call Saul' Top List". Deadline. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  157. ^ Tangcay, Jazz (January 18, 2022). "'Dune' and 'Encanto' Lead Visual Effects Society Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
  158. ^ Pederson, Eric (March 8, 2022). "VES Awards: 'Dune' & 'Encanto' Lead With Four Wins Each; 'Foundation' Tops TV – Full Winners List". Deadline. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  159. ^ "BAFTA Television 2024: The Winners and Nominations". BAFTA. May 12, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  160. ^ Darcy, Ann (February 10, 2020). "Everything We Know About 'The Witcher' Animated Film Coming to Netflix". cheatsheet.com. Archived from the original on July 27, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  161. ^ Del Rosario, Alexandra (July 9, 2021). "'Nightmare Of The Wolf': Netflix Sets August Premiere Date, Teaser For 'The Witcher' Anime Film". Deadline. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
  162. ^ Romano, Nick (November 8, 2021). "Season of the Witcher: Inside Netflix's rapidly expanding cinematic universe". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  163. ^ Romero, Ariana (November 10, 2023). "'The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep' Will Pull You Under in 2024". Netflix Tudum. Archived from the original on November 20, 2023. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  164. ^ Dinsdale, Ryan (September 17, 2024). "The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep Netflix Film Delayed to February 2025". IGN. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  165. ^ "Netflix Sets 'The Witcher' Prequel Series". The Hollywood Reporter. July 27, 2020. Archived from the original on July 27, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  166. ^ "'The Witcher: Blood Origin': Michelle Yeoh Cast As Scian In Netflix Prequel Series". Deadline Hollywood. July 6, 2021. Archived from the original on January 5, 2022. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  167. ^ "'The Witcher: Blood Origin': Sophia Brown To Star With Laurence O'Fuarain & Michelle Yeoh In Netflix Fantasy Series, Filming To Begin In The UK In August". Deadline Hollywood. July 8, 2021. Archived from the original on December 3, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  168. ^ "'The Witcher: Blood Origin': Lenny Henry, Mirren Mack, Nathaniel Curtis, Dylan Moran Among Cast To Join Netflix Prequel Series; Filming Underway In UK". Deadline Hollywood. August 16, 2021. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  169. ^ Romano, Nick (September 24, 2022). "Minnie Driver joins The Witcher-verse in pivotal role that starts with Blood Origin". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 24, 2022. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
edit