Production for season two of Netflix‘s The Witcher has been shut down due to multiple positive COVID-19 tests and will resume production once it’s safe.
On Saturday, Deadline reported that there were four positive tests and that Netflix will carry out an isolated round of testing for everyone involved in the show. They also reported that none of the major members of the show’s cast — Henry Cavill, Anya Chalotra, and Freya Allan — have tested positive.
Lauren Hissrich, who is the Netflix series’ showrunner, tweeted the following regarding the four positive COVID tests.
Shortly before Deadline broke the news, one of the show’s leading cast members, Henry Cavill who plays Geralt of Rivia, shared a brief update after England returned to lockdown, thus meaning that production for The Witcher, which is being filmed at Arborfield Studios, west of London, had to be halted.
“England returns to Lockdown on Thursday so it is time for me to depart Yorkshire and The extraordinary North, and head back down South to continue shooting in the studio. Thank you for hosting all of us on season 2 of The Witcher. Hopefully I shall return to your hills, dales and fells soon. Stay strong and stay safe, my friends.”
The cast for The Witcher’s second season will be much bigger, as the show will add eight new characters, all of which are listed below.
- Kristofer Hivju as Nivellen
- Yasen Atour as Coen
- Agnes Bjorn as Vereena
- Paul Bullion as Lambert
- Aisha Fabienne Ross as Lydia
- Mecia Simson as Francesca
- Kim Bodnia as Vesemir
- Basil Eidenbenz as Eskel
Originally, Thue Ersted Rasmussen was going to play the role of Eskel, but a scheduling conflict due to the COVID-19 pandemic caused Netflix to find someone else for the role. If you’re unfamiliar with the character, Eskel, like Geralt of Rivia, is a Witcher from the School of the Wolf. He was trained by Vesemir, who is the oldest living Witcher, at Kaer Morhen.
As of right now, it’s unclear when the second season of The Witcher will be released, but it’s probably safe to assume that it’ll be ready to go sometime next year, perhaps by the end of the summer.
When season two does arrive, The Witcher’s showrunner, Lauren Hissrich, has said that it’ll be far more linear than the first season, as all three of the show’s main characters — Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri — are now on the same timeline.
