The Witcher showrunner, Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, recently promised season 3 will focus more on the original books. Based on a series of novels of the same name by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, The Witcher follows the impassive anti-hero Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill) and his adventures monster-hunting in a fantastical realm. Enhanced by potions that grant him with supernatural abilities and an extended life, Geralt finds himself caught up in the middle of a political power struggle between various kingdoms and protecting a young orphaned princess, Cirilla (Freya Allan) who holds an incredible power within her.

Following a post to Instagram to promote The Witcher spinoff show, The Witcher: Blood Origin, Hissrich was faced with comments criticizing the series. The showrunner took the time to reply to a few of them in an effort to defend her work while promising that season 3 will use more of Sapkowski's source material. Read what Hissrich said below:

What I want to say is: I did hear the fans. And S3 very much shows that shift back to the books, following Sapkowski’s amazing character journeys of our mains. I’m super excited for people to see it, and to feel heard. (We also answer a lot of questions from the first two seasons — Cahir’s journey, the introduction of the Scoia’tael, and how our family comes back together.) I also think that S3 will calm a lot of the speculation that’s going on right now — if only we could get there sooner!

Related: The Witcher Season 2 Ignores Repeated Mistakes From The First Series

The Witcher Season 2's Fan Backlash Explained

The Witcher Season 2 Eskel Basil Eidenbenz with hair in face

Upon The Witcher's release in late 2019, the fantasy series was met with mixed reviews from critics resulting in a 69% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, audiences were generally pleased with the season, giving the series a 90% Fresh rating. The Witcher season 2 found its reception to have flipped, with critics adoring the season and audiences deriding it, with some going so far as to review-bomb it on the review aggregator site. Although fans were still pleased with Cavill's performance, many criticized the series for its perceived drop in the quality of its writing and for straying too far from the original books.

One such prominent complaint lies with the character of Eskel, a beloved character from the books. A Witcher of the School of the Wolf, he shared a long-developed bond with Geralt and served as an important instructor in Ciri's training at Kaer Morhen. However, The Witcher season 2 introduced Eskel in episode 2 as a temperamental man, womanizer, and overall antagonistic force to Ciri. After being infected by a Leshen, Eskel is quickly dispatched by Geralt in the same episode, sparking fervent backlash from fans.

It seemed that the fans weren't the only ones displeased with The Witcher season 2's writing. Cavill previously committed to Hissrich's seven-year plan for the show under the condition that the stories they tell "honor Sapkowski's work." Following season 3's conclusion, Cavill is set to depart the series with Liam Hemsworth to replace him in season 4. With The Witcher returning to Netflix in the summer of 2023, audiences must be patient to see if season 3 truly represents the original books.

Next: Geralt Killing Eskel Wasn't S2's Mistake (Cutting His Flashbacks Was)

Source: Lauren Schmidt Hissrich