Netflix’s upcoming The Witcher TV series is moving right along, according to writer and executive producer Lauren S. Hissrich. News from the project has been on a steady drip since the project was announced, with Hissrich’s social media account acting as the main source. Since December of last year, she’s been providing regular updates with regard to the status of the series and development of the pilot episode’s script. And though things have been relatively quiet since about January, Hissrich is back and ready to share a potential premiere date and how many episodes will be in the first season.
News on the show is coming in conjunction with news from CD Projekt Red, both with regard to the studio’s upcoming Cyberpunk 2077 game and their thoughts on whether or not a Witcher IV game will ever happen (spoiler: it probably won’t). While the adventures of Geralt of Rivia are likely over in the video game realm, they are just getting started in the live-action one.
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In a flurry of tweets from her Twitter account, Hissrich offered some solid updates on the status of the series. As she said, the show will likely be eight episodes for its first season, and will potentially premiere as early as 2020. She also mentioned that the pilot script is ready for the all-important rewrites and she’s looking forward to assembling her writers’ room. Hissrich also confirmed that the series will film in Eastern Europe, because “This show couldn’t exist anyplace else.” Check out the rest of her tweets below:
Happy Friday! So much information coming out of the @netflix event in Rome. I'm told by my friends and colleagues that the level of excitement and anticipation for #Witcher was crazy! Let's sort through it...— Lauren S. Hissrich (@LHissrich) April 20, 2018
2020. Who knows?! We're moving quickly ahead with everything -- like, my head is spinning around Exorcist-style, except with enthusiasm, not evil possession -- but one thing is certain: quality comes before speed. You'll get it as soon as humanly possible, and it'll be good.— Lauren S. Hissrich (@LHissrich) April 20, 2018
Hissrich smartly addresses the eight episode elephant in the room, saying, “creatively, it’s the right call.” She even mentions how so many shows tend to lag in the middle, suggesting (correctly) that a smaller episode count is the first step in correcting that problem. Fewer episodes may also allow the series’ budget to go further on an episodic basis, meaning more mystical beasts and high fantasy on display, which is likely precisely why Netflix is interested in the property in the first place.
Both Netflix and Amazon have been chasing the success of Game of Thrones for quite some time, with the latter even turning it into a new creative mandate for its television division. While Amazon is reportedly ready to invest upwards of a billion dollars to bring The Lord of The Rings to TV, Netflix has opted to gamble on adapting a video game into a Game of Thrones-level show. So far, the race is on to see which streaming service takes the bigger shot at the Iron Throne.
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The Witcher does not yet have a premiere date on Netflix.
Source: Lauren S. Hissrich