Witcher: Blood Origin, the upcoming six-part prequel for The Witcher, is set to depict events 1,200 years before Geralt’s (played by Henry Cavill) story - but it’s also likely to reveal the tragic backstory of Witchers. The Netflix fantasy drama’s explosive season 1 success has prompted a surge of fans to deep dive into the show’s lore via the original book series by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski and the subsequent video game trilogy from CD Projekt Red. It’s this voraciously-consumed lore that illustrates a dark and odious past for Witchers, who are chosen to become monster hunters in their youth due to their natural aptitude relating to the craft.
Exposed to potions and mutagens while undergoing brutal training, many students don’t survive the peril. And those who do aren’t as lucky as it may seem, despite their newfound abilities, powers, and immunity to disease. As a byproduct, they're sentenced to a life of pariah status - seen as either sinister and greedy for their monster hunting, or daunting and untrustworthy due to their variation from the norm. Specific instances within The Witcher's lore regarding the past echo the excruciating nature of Witcher training. It's known that early Witcher-type experiments were carried out by immoral mages (overseen by Grandmaster Ortolan) at the infamous Rissberg Castle. These experiments are also believed to have spawned various prototypes of creatures and elixirs.
With all of this inhumane treatment, vicious training, and seemingly sinister history in mind, it's more than likely that Witcher: Blood Origin will expound on what is most likely an equally tragic Witcher backstory. Not only will the prequel take place 1,200 years prior to The Witcher, but Netflix has also stated that the limited series will exposit the creation of the very first Witcher and the events that paved the way for when parallel universes disastrously collided during the Conjunction of the Spheres. The alienated and woeful themes of a Witcher's life are common knowledge, but this prequel has the ability to truly delve into the history of Witchers - fleshing out some additional context for fans and providing further timeline insight.
Blood Origin will feature Jodie Turner-Smith (best known for her main role in 2019's Queen and Slim) as the character Éile. She's said to be a warrior on a "quest for vengeance and redemption," and this could easily play into the theme of historical abuse and mistreatment of Witchers and trainees. There are also abundant possibilities to expand on regarding past dark mage behavior, specifically those who were engaging in unethical practices at Rissberg Castle. It'll be exciting to see how these dark facets of the past and the events that brought about the Conjunction of Spheres intersect and create the mold for what fans know of Witcher so far.
Between Netflix confirming both Witcher: Blood Origin, as well as an upcoming anime film entitled Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, fans are going to have some content and promises of future material to semi-satiate their hunger for season 2. Although only broad strokes are known regarding what will happen in the show's prequel, it's clear that the Witchers' backstory will be as tragic and bleak as the existence they're currently known for.