In mid-March, Netflix halted production on The Witcher’s second season due to COVID-19. Filming was reportedly meant to be stalled for roughly two weeks, but coronavirus concerns delayed production even further. The cast and crew are scheduled to return in the next couple of months, however, since filming will resume in August, specifically the 17th.
This news comes courtesy of the Netflix show’s official Twitter feed. See the brief post below, written in the style of the ever poetic bard Jaskier,
I’m dusting off my lute and quill,
I have some news, some mead to spill:
After all the months we’ve been apart
It’s time for production to restart.
The Witcher and his bard – who’s flawless,
Will reunite on set 17 August.— The Witcher (@witchernetflix) June 22, 2020
Had production not undergone such a lengthy hiatus, shooting would have originally ended in August. Given the restart time, it stands to reason filming for The Witcher’s sophomore effort won’t conclude until late this year or early 2021. Consequently, the wait for the new season to begin streaming will undoubtedly last quite a bit longer. The Witcher Season 2 doesn’t currently have a release date, but already wasn’t expected to hit until sometime in 2021.
Before shooting stalled on the second season, the streaming giant announced new casting information. Several characters were added to the show, including three more Witchers—Thue Ersted Rasmussen of Fast and Furious 9 fame as Eskel, Peaky Blinders alum Paul Bullion as Lambert, and Killing Eve’s Kim Bodnia as Vesemir.
The Witcher’s first season premiered on Netflix last December to extraordinary success. Within only four weeks, approximately 76 million viewers had tuned in to the fantasy series. This level of excitement translated to sales of The Witcher 3, which experienced an incredible year-on-year increased in the month of December.
[Source: The Witcher Netflix on Twitter]
