2022 has been a year of fantasy epics, with worlds of Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones both treating fans to brand new series that have each been received with varying degrees of critical and commercial success. As a result, fans of Netflix’s Witcher series may feel a little hard done by, with lovers of the show’s dark, magical tone having to wait till 2023 for a new series.
Taking to the stage at Netflix’s TUDUM 2022 event, series star, Henry Cavill, announced that season three of The Witcher would be arriving on the streaming service in the summer of 2023.
Sure, the date might not be very specific, but we’ll bite your hand off for any news regarding the fantasy series, which recently wrapped production after several Covid-19-related setbacks.
So what exactly is the new series about, and when will it come out? We’re here to answer all your questions regarding the return of The Witcher, giving you all the information you need to know to get yourself hyped.
What is the new series of The Witcher about?
Whilst many fans of the fantasy series may recognise The Witcher as previously being an award-winning video game series, they first originated as novels released throughout the 1990s by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. So far, each show series has followed the book series chronology, with the first season being based on short story collections The Last Wish and Sword Of Destiny, whilst the following series took on the first full book, Blood Of Elves.
As a result, we can expect the third season to be based on Sapkowski’s second novel, Time Of Contempt.
The synopsis for the new series, released by Netflix, reads, “As monarchs, mages, and beasts of the Continent compete to capture her, Geralt takes Ciri of Cintra into hiding, determined to protect his newly-reunited family against those who threaten to destroy it. Entrusted with Ciri’s magical training, Yennefer leads them to the protected fortress of Aretuza, where she hopes to discover more about the girl’s untapped powers; instead, they discover they’ve landed in a battlefield of political corruption, dark magic, and treachery. They must fight back, put everything on the line — or risk losing each other forever”.
Who is starring in the new Witcher series?
The upcoming series will see the return of the lead star Henry Cavill, alongside show staples Anya Chalotra, Freya Allan, Joey Batey, MyAnna Buring, Eamon Farren, Anna Shaffer, Mahesh Jadu, Royce Pierreson and many more. In addition, the series will also welcome newcomers Robbie Amell, Meng’er Zhang, Hugh Skinner and Christelle Elwin.
Whilst Cavill is making a return for the third series, he has previously announced that this season will be his last, with his role to be taken over by Hollywood star Liam Hemsworth.
Upon the release of the news, Cavill released a statement saying, “My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures, and alas, I will be laying down my medallion and my swords for Season 4”. Continuing in his statement, Cavill added, “In my stead, the fantastic Mr Liam Hemsworth will be taking up the mantle of the White Wolf. As with the greatest of literary characters, I pass the torch with reverence for the time spent embodying Geralt and enthusiasm to see Liam’s take on this most fascinating and nuanced of men. Liam, good sir, this character has such a wonderful depth to him, enjoy diving in and seeing what you can find”.
When will the new Witcher series be released?
Netflix has previously announced that season three of the show is scheduled for release in the summer of 2023, but the gap between the third and fourth series is likely to be around two years.
Still, in the meantime, there is a juicy prequel series to look forward to. The series, The Witcher: Nightmare Of The Wolf, is due for release on December 25th, 2022, with the four-episode-long show taking place 1,200 years before The Witcher. The show will follow the creation of the first Witcher.
