Netflix’s The Witcher: Release date, cast and everything else we know

Netflix’s adaptation of the fantasy book series The Witcher is almost here. The popular novels have already been adapted into a video game series and comic books, but some people have described the upcoming show as Netflix’s answer to Game of Thrones.  

The Witcher tells the story of Geralt of Rivia, a monster hunter who kills mythical beasts for money. He’s cynical and pragmatic, but Geralt does reluctantly help those in need as he travels the fictional land of The Continent. 

Here’s everything you need to know about the show. 

When’s the release date for The Witcher?

Netflix doesn’t have a release date set for the series but has slated it for sometime in 2019. Production of the first season officially ended in April, according to social media posts from actor Adam Levy, who plays Mousesack, and director Charlotte Brändström.

In May 2017, Netflix announced it was adapting the books into a series. The showrunner is Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, producer of Daredevil and Marvel’s The Defenders. 

Who’s acting in the series?

Taking the lead role of Geralt of Rivia is Superman himself, Henry Cavil. The actor has said he’s a fan of the novels and the video game series, in particular The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. He told IGN in August 2018, when he was promoting Mission Impossible: Fallout, how much he wanted the role. He was picked for the job the following month.

The other principal actors in the series are Freya Allan (Into the Badlands) as Ciri and Anya Chalotra (The ABC Murders, Wanderlust) as Yennefer.  Ciri is the young princess of Cintra, one of the kingdoms in the world of The Witcher, and Yennefer is a sorceress who is Geralt’s love interest and mother of Ciri. 

Another important role cast for the show is Roach, Geralt’s horse and traveling companion, who’s a favorite among fans. 

Who’s The Witcher?

Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski wrote the first book featuring Geralt in 1992, with the English title Sword of Destiny. Both it and the follow-up, The Last Wish, were a series of short stories featuring the protagonist. Sapkowski then went on to write the five-book saga about Geralt and Ciri. 

In the books, Geralt’s job is that of a professional monster hunter known as a witcher. He was trained for the job as a young child and was experimented on, which turned his skin and hair white and gave him superhuman strength. Geralt is also skilled in magic and sword fighting. 

In his travels, Geralt has killed all sorts of monsters for the right price. He’s also showed compassion for those in need of someone with his skills. 

As for the plot of the show, there’s minimal info outside of the trailer. A portion of the casting script was leaked on Reddit but contains no plot spoilers. Hissirch tweeted back in July that the goal for the end of the season is to make viewers cry.