Netflix's The Witcher Begins Production On Season 4 – And Announces Final Season
"The Witcher" season 4 has a major challenge on its hands with the recasting of its main character. After three seasons in blond wigs and leather, Henry Cavill has departed the Continent and Liam Hemsworth ("The Hunger Games") will be taking over his role. "The Witcher" EP Tomek Bagiński has said that the change won't just be glossed over, promising "we have a very, very good plan to introduce our new Geralt" that is "very, very close to the meta ideas which are deeply embedded in the books."
Whatever the plan is, it seems that Netflix is satisfied with its execution — at least enough to green light "The Witcher" season 5. The official account for the series on X (formerly known as Twitter) showed the cast assembling for a season 4 table read and announced a fifth and final season still to come. The video is definitely worth watching if you're a fan of Jaskier actor Joey Batey's bard ballads.
It's official, The Witcher season 4 is in production. But that's not all, we're already planning season 5, which will be the final season and bring this epic show to a fitting conclusion. See you on The Continent. pic.twitter.com/c0ilUCWYkF
— The Witcher (@witchernetflix) April 18, 2024
"The Witcher" season 4 still has a long way to go, but the start of production does give us a rough idea of its release window. Season 3 began filming in April 2022 and premiered in summer 2023, so a summer 2025 debut seems likely for Hemsworth's Geralt of Rivia.
Big, sexy leather boots to fill
Despite the hurdle of the recast, the pressure on "The Witcher" season 4 is lessened somewhat by the fact that season 3 was, well, pretty bad. A sort-of reboot with a "new vision for Geralt" (as Bagiński put it) might be exactly what the doctor ordered. And Hemsworth has some experience bringing a show back from disaster; he starred in "Most Dangerous Game," which debuted on the doomed platform Quibi but ended up getting rescued for a second season by the Roku Channel. (Admittedly, the show was later jettisoned from the Roku Channel as well.)
Also easing the transition is the fact that "The Witcher" will no longer be primarily focused on Geralt but on his adopted daughter Ciri, played by Freya Allan. The show was never really completely centered on Geralt to begin with, instead splitting its narrative three ways between Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) as their paths cross and diverge throughout the years. Nonetheless, a shift in protagonist is an interesting way to shake things up.
We'll keep you updated on "The Witcher" season 4 as production continues.