The Witcher’s Cast And Showrunner Open Up About The 7-Year Plan

Recently, Netflix’s The Witcher showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich and the entire cast talked about the coming future of the franchise. The team opened up about

By Soniya Hinduja
December 15,2021
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Recently, Netflix’s The Witcher showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich and the entire cast talked about the coming future of the franchise. The team opened up about Hissrich’s chalked-out seven seasons and the fact that the show will continue to draw inspiration from the original novels and short stories. 

Showrunner Hissrich on Witcher’s future 

In an exclusive conversation with IGN, The Witcher showrunner and Executive Producer Lauren Schmidt Hissrich elaborated on the show’s seven-year plan. She said, “It would be a straight translation of the books… I think there’s just so much material that I don’t feel the need to start inventing my own to keep it going.”

“We try to stick to a book a season,” Hissrich said, adding to the topic. “We did combine some of the short stories for the first season. And there are things in the short stories that we want to continue to return to. Because there was just too much good material to tell in eight episodes. So, for instance, that’s why we did A Grain of Truth at the beginning of this season. And we hope to keep peppering those in as we go.”

 

Witcher
Netflix’s The Witcher

“For me, it is all about the books,” said Henry Cavill, who plays Geralt of Rivia. “The books are so nuanced, and there is so much complexity to the characters in there that it is ultimately that. As far as the show goes, I want to make sure that the character and the books are done justice in live-action because I’m always of the mind that if it’s not broken, don’t try and fix it. And I don’t think they’re broken, and I love those books. For me, that’s my focus.”

Henry Cavill expresses his excitement.

Besides Hissrich, actor Henry Cavill also pitched in to anticipate what lay ahead for the team. “If there are things that happen after that, then exciting things to explore as well,” Cavill said. “Because it’s a fantasy world, and we don’t quite know what happens to Geralt at the end of the books. There’s a strong suggestion, but then we also have the games, which have happened after the books. And then the games all have different endings as well, so maybe something happens after that? Maybe something has happened before that? I’ve heard that Sapkowski spoke once about writing another book. And whether it was just going to be a solo adventure of Geralt or something else, I do not know. But that could be interesting to explore as well.”

According to what showrunner Hissrich has in mind, the projects will likely turn into a spin-off show if the franchise decides to stray off of the source material. “I think that one of the beauties of building out a Witcher universe is that you can use those spin-offs to do slightly different things than the books did,” she said. “But to me, that makes it even more important than in the mothership series we always stick to what Sapkowski intended. To me, I don’t think it’s my responsibility to continue those stories when he felt there was a natural ending.”

Also Read: Witcher Season 2 New Images Focus On Geralt, Ciri, And Battle Of Sodden Hill

Anya Chalotra, Joey Batey, and Freya Allan’s views on the subject 

Henry Cavill has time and again expressed his devotion towards the show. The actor has confirmed that he is willing to commit to his character of Geralt until that ending. And fortunately, Yennefer and Jaskier actors Anya Chalotra and Joey Batey share this feeling as well. “I’d follow Lauren to the ends of the Earth,” said Batey. “This show has given me so much, I would support the show and be in it until the end,” added Chalotra.

However, Anya Chalotra is uncertain about the arc for Yennefer’s upcoming journey in the show. This is because the show planned for an extensive seven seasons compared to the amount of original material available. “From the books, we all know where it’s headed. And I can’t wait to fulfill that and enhance those characters’ storylines. A lot of Yennefer’s storylines have been created, so anything’s possible.”

The Witcher Season 2
The Witcher Season 2

Joey Batey’s Jaskier seems to have a similar fate. Although, this uncertainty has Batey excited for what’s to come. “I think Lauren [Scmidt Hissrich] gets to have fun with some of the characters we don’t see as much in the books,” he says. “And so the writing team get to go ‘Ah! Fun, where do we put them in this world?’. So I’m keen for the surprises.”

Additionally, star Freya Allen, who plays Ciri, wishes to accomplish this one thing for her character before the seven seasons are done. “one thing I want is for her to get a nice silver sword finally. Rather than this wooden stick that she’s currently got,” “she says. “and I want to see her fight monsters and fight people.” For more from The Witcher, check out: Everything We Know About The Witcher Season 2 From Release Date To New Cast