Everything we know so far about Netflix's first season of ‘The Witcher'
There's a lot of chatter around the new show
We’re expecting Netflix to get very busy in the coming months, with billions of dollars’ worth of original content on the way.
A third season of Stranger Things is on the way, while we’ve also had confirmation that Queer Eye is being renewed after a successful start to life on the streaming platform.
There has also been talk of Netflix buying up cinema chains with Oscar eligibility in mind, but we don’t anticipate such a push to come at the expense of the original TV shows it has produced, and which it will continue to bring to audiences.
Indeed, the latest show to fit that description is a new adaptation of The Witcher, based on the fantasy series of the same name from Polish writer Andrej Sapkowski.
Writer and showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich is helming the show, with Sapkowski involved as a creative consultant.
Sapkowski reportedly had some reservations about a Polish adaptation, entitled The Hexer, and will hope a more hands-on role will help produce a stronger finished product.
IMDb’s description of the show says it “Chronicles monster hunters who, with training and body modification, develop supernatural abilities to battle deadly beasts” – sounds pretty entertaining already.
Schmidt Hissrich has a strong grounding in Netflix shows, having most recently worked on Marvel’s The Defenders as co-writer and co-executive producer. She also wrote or co-wrote a number of episodes in the second season of the Daredevil Netflix adaptation, and has been sharing the latest about the show on Twitter.
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Just the eight episodes
First of all, it will be eight episodes in length – the same as The Defenders and shorter than The Hexer’s 13.
While specifics are yet to be confirmed, it is expected to follow Geralt of Rivia, described by Netflix as “a mutated monster hunter [who] struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts”.
No casting decisions have been made at this stage, and Schmidt Hissrich confirmed that only one script – for the pilot episode – has been written at this stage.
She does, however, have “several seasons mapped out in my head” if the first is a success.
We’ll be waiting a while
We don’t have an official release date yet, but Schmit Hissrich has made it clear she plans to value quality over speed.
“You’ll get it as soon as humanly possible, and it’ll be good,” she explained, while pointing to a tentative 2020 release date.
It could even take longer than that, but it’s clear things won’t be rushed.
It will be filmed in Eastern Europe
Considering The Witcher’s Polish background, it was always going to be interesting to see what decisions were made with regards to filming.
However, it seems the decision to film in Eastern Europe was never in question.
“This show couldn’t exist anyplace else. Period,” Schmidt Hissrich explained.
With a couple of years to wait, we’re sure to get plenty of speculation about all elements of the show, but it’s fair to say there’s already a great deal of excitement for something very much in its early stages.
No doubt there will be more announcements to get excited about in the weeks and months to come.
(Images: Atari)
