The Witcher volume one spoilers follow.
The Witcher franchise really is a valley of plenty these days. Between the anime prequel and the many, many spinoffs currently in production, the world created by Andrzej Sapkowski seems to grow bigger and bigger each day.
But all eyes remain firmly fixed on Henry Cavill's flagship show, and not just because Geralt is easy on the eye. The good news is that before season two even arrived, Netflix confirmed that season three was officially on its way. And on top of that, season four and season five have also been confirmed, though with a big casting change to boot. More on that later.
What to Read Next
For now, back to season three.
Part one of the season has already launched and there are some serious reveals that lay the groundwork for a pretty sensational part two.
So grab your loyal steed and all the coins you can carry, as we head back into the Continent and find out what's coming next in The Witcher season three part two.
The Witcher season 3 part 2 release date: When will it air?
Ring the bells! The Witcher season three part one has dropped and now we eagerly await its return. Thankfully we know when that will be and thankfully it's not too long until we're back with The White Wolf and co.
It was announced via the show's official Twitter account that volume one of the third season would land on Netflix on June 29, 2023 and would be quickly followed up by volume two on 27th July, 2023.
That's almost a month between the two drops, so that's plenty of time to digest what the heck went down at that Conclave and to theorise what the fallout could be.
While speaking to showrunner Lauren S Hissrich in November 2021, Digital Spy learned that the writers' room had already begun work on scripts for season three.
"We had some new people come in," she said, "and it was really interesting how it changed the dynamic of the room, to have this sort of new blood: people who have watched the first season, who then had screened the second season, and came in with fresh, new ideas, who sort of challenged me on things that I hadn't really thought about before."
She continued: "What is interesting, though, is that we finished the scripts, and only then do we start talking to the actors and the directors and getting into the production constraints of actually turning these eight episodes into a full-length journey.
"It's important to me that the actors, for instance, that they feel passionate about their journeys as well — that they understand their characters' journeys. So those are conversations that will all start soon."
The Witcher season 3 part 2 cast: Who's in it?
Henry Cavill may be leaving but he's not hung up that silver wig just yet so expect to see him in volume two alongside our faves who have made the show what it is.
• Freya Allan as Cirilla (aka Ciri)
• Anya Chalotra as Yennefer of Vengerberg
• Joey Batey as Jaskier
• Royce Pierreson as Istredd
• Anna Shaffer as Triss Merigold
• Kim Bodnia as Vesemir
News of Cavill's departure from the show came as an initial shock to fans when it was announced in late October 2022 that he would be replaced as Geralt in season four by Liam Hemsworth.
Lauren Hissrich eased the surprise by making it clear that the show will not end with Cavill's exit.
In a statement shared that day, Cavill said: "My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures, and alas, I will be laying down my medallion and my swords for season four.
"In my stead, the fantastic Mr Liam Hemsworth will be taking up the mantle of the White Wolf. As with the greatest of literary characters, I pass the torch with reverence for the time spent embodying Geralt and enthusiasm to see Liam's take on this most fascinating and nuanced of men.
"Liam, good sir, this character has such a wonderful depth to him, enjoy diving in and seeing what you can find."
Henry Cavill's exit from The Witcher was met with some confusion. Initial rumours suggested his intended return as Superman in the DC movies might have played a big role in his decision, but let's hope not as that's no longer happening.
Judging by what we've seen so far in volume one, this hasn't impacted the story in season three and we can't envisage it affecting volume two either as it sounds like Cavill's final outing will give him the ending his commitment to the character deserves.
"What is so interesting is that season three, to me, is the closest thing that we've done as a one-to-one adaptation of the books," showrunner, Hissrich said (via EW).
"Obviously, we can't do every page, but Time of Contempt gave us so many big action events, plot points, defining character moments, huge reveals of a big bad. There's so much to do that we were able to stick really, really closely with the books.
"Geralt's big turn is about giving up neutrality and doing anything that he has to do to get to Ciri. And to me, it's the most heroic sendoff that we could have, even though it wasn't written to be that.
"Geralt has a new mission in mind when we come back to him in season four. He's a slightly different Geralt than we expected. Now, by the way, that's an understatement."
So, who else is returning for another round in Henry Cavill's final turn as Geralt?
If you're up to date with The Witcher, you'll also know that Ciri's father, Emhyr, comes back from the dead, so to speak. Bart Edwards will play a major role as season three's Big Bad, if that ominous season two ending is anything to go by.
Volume one of the latest series has seen the alliance between Nilfgaard and the elves grow tense for which Mecia Simson (Francesa) has been the face of the elven warriors. This intricate ongoing war has also drawn in the mages, most namely Mimi Ndiweni's Fringilla.
Mahesh Jadu's Vilgefortz is also a mage worth keeping and eye on as is Tissaia (MyAnna Buring). Something is definitely brewing between these two and is ready to erupt in volume two.
As season three began filming, a number of new cast additions were confirmed – including some familiar faces from other big franchises.
So far, this includes:
• The Flash's Robbie Amell as Gallatin, who leads an army of guerrilla Scoia'tael fighting for Nilfgaard.
• Shang-Chi's Meng'er Zhang as Milva, a fierce and talented human huntress adopted by the dryads of Brokilon Forest, who also has incredible archery skills and a strong survival instinct.
• Fleabag's Hugh Skinner as King Vizimir's (Ed Birch) playboy brother Prince Radovid. The press release states: "With his good looks and drunken charm, Radovid amazes with how incisive he can be in political affairs, but it's all games until someone gets hurt."
• Bloods' Christell Elwin as Mistle, a member of teenage misfit gang The Rats who is suspicious and out for revenge – though a chance meeting changes everything.
The Witcher season 3 part 2 plot: What will happen?
The official synopsis for the show reads: "As monarchs, mages and beasts of the Continent compete to capture her, Geralt takes Ciri of Cintra into hiding, determined to protect his newly-reunited family against those who threaten to destroy it."
"Entrusted with Ciri's magical training, Yennefer leads them to the protected fortress of Aretuza, where she hopes to discover more about the girl's untapped powers; instead, they discover they've landed in a battlefield of political corruption, dark magic and treachery. They must fight back, put everything on the line or risk losing each other forever."
Well. The show definitely sticks to bill on that one as the unfolding of volume one plays out exactly as promised.
Geralt finds himself briefly separated from Ciri and Yennefer as he hunts down the mage hitman Rience who has his blood-thirsty eyes on Ciri.
After he fails to eliminate the threat Geralt reunites with the pair at Aretuza ahead of the Conclave, organised to encourage peace and unity amongst the Continent.
Peace and unity go out the window when Stregobor is rumbled for plotting to capture Ciri, kidnapping novice mages with elven blood and stealing the book of Monoliths which holds the knowledge of how to get rid of the elven race once and for all.
Except, come the close of the series, it seems as though Stregobor has been set up, and is in fact the scapegoat for the real rogue mage.
All signs are pointing to Vilgefortz as the villain but before he could confront him, Geralt found himself at the wrong end of a sword held by Dijkstra.
Not to worry, he hasn't been slashed or impaled... yet. He is, however, moments away from imminent danger when volume one draws to a close.
Leaving us jaws-to-floor, volume one has laid the foundation for some extreme tension to come.
Vilgefortz has some serious explaining to do and we can't imagine that will happen without a few blows.
Redania's actions at the hands of Dijkstra suggest that pockets of alliances have been set up to challenge The Brotherhood and Yennefer. Who's playing on which side of the fence will certainly be hashed out in volume two.
Hissrich told TechRadar that season three will be based on The Time of Contempt, the second book in the Witcher saga. In that book, Yennefer, Ciri, and Geralt journey to Aretuza where a coup takes place, forcing this trio to separate again.
While it's worth remembering that this blueprint can change – as it so often does in the translation from page to screen – we have already seen a very like-for-like trajectory in Yennefer, Ciri, and Geralt's journey to Aretuza where a coup seems to be forming.
Ultimately this does mean things might not turn out great for everyone. While appearing on a panel at the Lucca Comics & Games Festival in Italy, showrunner Hissrich teased that season three will have "a lot of action, some death... some death!"
Now, is she referring to a major character's demise or just some good old-fashioned monster slaying? So far we haven't had to shed tears over a major loss so who knows what's in store? Guess we'll have to wait and see…
The Witcher season 3 part 2 episodes: How many will there be?
The first instalment of The Witcher season three has treated fans with five episodes. Sadly volume two isn't as long and wraps up the season's story with a condensed three episodes matching the overall set up of the previous season with a total of eight episodes per season.
The Witcher season 3 volume 2 trailer: When can I watch it?
If the show does plan to treat fans with a little teaser we would expect something to launch in the days leading up to the second volume launch but naturally we will keep you in the loop.
The Witcher is available on Netflix.
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