The Witcher Season 2 announces cast and begins production

Staff Writer

Reading time: 3 mins

Game of Thrones’ Kristofer Hivju has joined the cast of The Witcher Season 2 as the show prepares to start production on its sophomore run.

Netflix’s fantasy epic, based on the hit book series of the same name, stars Henry Cavill (Mission Impossible – Fallout, Man of Steel) as Geralt of Rivia. Alongside him, Anya Chalotra (The ABC Murders, Wanderlust) returns for Season 2 as the sorceress Yennefer, Freya Allan (Third Day, Gunpowder Milkshake) as Ciri and Joey Batey (Knightfall, Strike) as fan-favourite Jaskier.

Other returning cast include MyAnna Buring (Kill List) as Tissaia, Tom Canton (Good Karma Hospital) as Filavandrel, Lilly Cooper (Peterloo) as Murta, Jeremy Crawford (Titans) as Yarpin Zigrin, Eamon Farren (Twin Peaks) as Cahir, Mahesh Jadu (Marco Polo) as Vilgefortz, Terence Maynard (Cursed) as Artorius, Lars Mikkelson (House of Cards) as Stregobor, Mimi Ndiweni (Black Earth Rising) as Fringilla Vigo, Royce Pierreson (Judy) as Istredd, Wilson Radjou-Pujalte (Hunter Street) as Dara, Anna Shaffer (Harry Potter) as Triss Merigold, Therica Wilson Read (Young Wallander) as Sabrina.

Now, they’re getting some equally epic company, with Kristofer, known for playing Game of Thrones’ Tormund Giantsbane, joining the line-up as Nivellen. He leads a wave of new additions to the cast, including Yasen Atour (Young Wallander) as Coen, Agnes Bjorn (Monster) as Vereena, Paul Bullion (Peaky Blinders) as Lambert, Thue Ersted Rasmussen (Fast and Furious 9) as Eskel, Aisha Fabienne Ross (The Danish Girl) as Lydia and recent graduate Mecia Simson, as Francesca.

Season 2 will be directed by Stephen Surjik (Umbrella Academy), Sarah O’Gorman (Cursed), Ed Bazalgette (The Last Kingdom), and Geeta V. Patel (Meet The Patels).

The Witcher showrunner and Executive Producer, Lauren Schmidt Hissrich (Marvel’s Daredevil, Marvel’s The Defenders, Umbrella Academy) comments: “The reaction to season one of The Witcher set a high bar for adding new talent for the second season. Sophie Holland and her casting team have once again found the very best people to embody these characters, and in the hands of these accomplished directors, we’re excited to see these new stories come to life.”

Production will begin this month in the UK, ready for a 2021 release date.

Netflix renews The Witcher for Season 2

13th November 2019

Netflix has renewed The Witcher for Season 2, before the first season has even aired.

Based on the bestselling fantasy series of books, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.

Henry Cavill (Mission Impossible – Fallout, Justice League) leads the cast, playing the role of Geralt of Rivia, alongside Anya Cholatra as Yennefer, Freya Allan as Ciri, Jodhi May (Game of Thrones, Genius) as Calanthe, Björn Hlynur Haraldsson (Fortitude) as Eist, Adam Levy (Knightfall, Snatch) as Mousesack and MyAnna Buring (Ripper Street, Kill List) as Tissaia.

The show marks a big push by Netflix into the fantasy arena, as it joins the growing number of broadcasters and streamers attempting to make the next Game of Thrones. The Witcher saga is a strong choice for source material, with its most recent novel published in 2013 and a slew of board game and video game adaptations that have helped build a large fanbase.

Season 1 is already highly anticipated, as it prepares to debut on Netflix on 20th December. Now, Netflix has announced an eight-episode second season will begin production in early 2020, with Cavill, Allan and Chalotra set to return, alongside showrunner Schmidt Hissrich and exec-producers Tomek Baginski, Jason F. Brown, Sean Daniel, Mike Ostrowski, Steve Gaub and Jarosław Sawko.

“I’m so thrilled that before fans have even seen our first season, we are able to confirm that we’ll be returning to The Continent again to continue telling the stories of Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri,” Hissrich said in a statement.