TV SERIES · 2019–present · USA
The Witcher
- Created by
- Lauren Schmidt Hissrich
- Network
- Netflix
- Seasons
- 4
- Episodes
- 32
- Studio
- Sean Daniel Company, Platige Image, Hivemind
31 archived facts 3 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
Geralt of Rivia, a mutated monster-hunter for hire, journeys toward his destiny in a turbulent world where people often prove more wicked than beasts.
Summary: TMDB
All facts (31)
- #001
Before becoming a television series, The Witcher was in development as a live-action feature film by Platige Films and the Sean Daniel Company, announced in November 2015. The film was to be directed by Tomasz Bagiński and written by Thania St. John, with a planned 2017 theatrical release.
- #002
The planned Witcher film was to draw on the short stories "The Witcher" and "The Lesser Evil" from The Last Wish, serving as an introduction to the Witcher world and the start of a possible film series. Bagiński hoped to shoot it in Poland and/or Eastern Europe, with a budget estimated between $20 and $30 million.
- #003
Netflix announced in May 2017 that production was starting on an English-language drama TV series based on the books, which became The Witcher.
- #004
Lauren Schmidt Hissrich was reported in December 2017 to be serving as showrunner of The Witcher.
- #005
Schmidt Hissrich said in April 2018 that the pilot script was complete and that The Witcher's first season would run eight episodes.
- #006
Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich stressed that The Witcher would stay faithful to Sapkowski's novels while restructuring the material for television, including a nonlinear first-season timeline used to introduce Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri.
- #007
Netflix announced a second season of The Witcher on November 13, 2019, under the working title "Mysterious Monsters", with production planned to start in London in early 2020 and a release targeted for 2021.
- #008
The Witcher was renewed for a third season, announced by Netflix on September 25, 2021, and in April 2023 it was announced that the third season would be released in two volumes on June 29 and July 27, 2023.
- #009
While filming of The Witcher's fourth season was underway, Netflix renewed the series in April 2024 for a fifth and final season.
- #010
Netflix also expanded The Witcher franchise with the live-action prequel miniseries Blood Origin in 2022, set more than a thousand years before Geralt's era.
- #011
Lauren Schmidt Hissrich pointed out that Yennefer's story in The Witcher covers around 70 years, while Ciri's covers only about 2 weeks.
- #012
Lauren Schmidt Hissrich said Yennefer and Cirilla were given more prominence in The Witcher so viewers could understand them better.
- #013
According to Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, showing the backstories of Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri gets to the soul of The Witcher, which she described as the story of a broken family and of three people who are orphans living on the margins of society yet determined not to need anyone.
- #014
Lauren Schmidt Hissrich said the second season of The Witcher will build on the foundations of the first season and become more focused, with the characters interacting with each other more frequently.
- #015
Schmidt Hissrich described the coming together of Geralt, Ciri and Yennefer as a family as the most important part of The Witcher for her.
- #016
According to Schmidt Hissrich, imagining a character's family also requires understanding their family of origin, and for Geralt that means the brotherhood of the witchers.
- #017
Schmidt Hissrich said she was excited to meet Vesemir, Geralt's father figure, and the men he was raised with since he was seven years old.
- #018
In September 2018, Netflix announced that Henry Cavill would play Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher. Cavill was chosen from more than 200 actors and actively campaigned for the part, having long been a fan of the video game adaptations, particularly The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, though he read the books after taking the role.
- #019
The Witcher's cast additions announced alongside Kim Bodnia included Kristofer Hivju, Yasen Atour, Agnes Born, Paul Bullion, Thue Ersted Rasmussen, Aisha Fabienne Ross and Mecia Simson.
- #020
In September 2020, it was announced that Basil Eidenbenz would take over the role of Eskel from Thue Ersted Rasmussen in The Witcher.
- #021
Rebecca Hanssen was announced in November 2020 as Queen Meve in The Witcher.
- #022
In March 2021, Kevin Doyle joined The Witcher as Ba'Lian, a character created for the series who does not appear in the novels.
- #023
Cassie Clare was cast in The Witcher as Philippa Eilhart.
- #024
Adjoa Andoh took the role of Nenneke in The Witcher, while Liz Carr was cast as Fenn.
- #025
Simon Callow, Graham McTavish and Chris Fulton were cast in The Witcher as Codringher, Dijkstra and Rience respectively.
- #026
Robbie Amell, Meng'er Zhang, Hugh Skinner and Christelle Elwin joined the cast of The Witcher in April 2022 in recurring roles.
- #027
Michalina Olszańska, Ryan Hayes, Kate Winter, Martyn Ellis, Harvey Quinn and Poppy Almond were cast in The Witcher in July 2022.
- #028
Netflix announced in October 2022 that Liam Hemsworth would take over the role of Geralt of Rivia from Henry Cavill starting with the fourth season of The Witcher.
- #029
Laurence Fishburne was announced in January 2024 as a cast member of The Witcher, playing Regis.
- #030
Sharlto Copley, James Purefoy, Danny Woodburn, Linden Porco, Eve Ridley and Clive Russell are among the actors joining the fourth season of The Witcher.
- #031
In April 2018, Lauren Schmidt Hissrich announced that The Witcher would be shot in Central and Eastern Europe.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
Sources for the entries on this page
- Wikipedia The Witcher (TV series) — Wikipedia
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