The Witcher made a splash on Netflix with its first season in the final weeks of 2019, and the wait for the second season isn't ending any time soon. The very good news is that some new looks at what's to come in Season 2 have released, showing some new circumstances (and threads!) for Henry Cavill's Geralt of Rivia, Freya Allan's Ciri, and Anya Chalotra's Yennefer. Some are in better shape than others, and the new images paint a picture of what's to come.
As a quick refresher, The Witcher ended Season 1 with Geralt and Ciri finally meeting after spending eight episodes slowly but surely making their way towards each other, while Yennefer desperately fought at the Battle of Sodden. Season 2 will see Geralt take Ciri to the witcher stronghold where he grew up, known as Kaer Morhen. Believing Yennefer dead, Geralt wants to protect Ciri while the kings, elves, demons, and humans fight for power on the Continent.
Keep reading for a new look at the three main characters and a breakdown of what the images mean for the second season!
Geralt of Rivia
On the one hand, this image of Henry Cavill as Geralt in Season 2 looks pretty similar to Geralt in Season 1, insofar as he looks grimy, glum, and willing to communicate mostly via grunt. Crossing paths with Ciri evidently won't result in all smiles all the time from Geralt of Rivia! On the other hand, however, the full-length photo reveals that he has a new suit of what passes for his armor.
The differences aren't too prominent, and I have to imagine that Geralt needs to upgrade his clothing on a semi-regular basis considering what can happen on his monster hunts, but good for him! He also seems to be inside of a dark structure, which could be Kaer Morhen. That said, he has his sword drawn, so maybe he's facing greater danger than he would find at the witcher stronghold.
Princess Cirilla
Speaking of Kaer Morhen, Ciri clearly isn't just hiding in the shadows at the witcher stronghold! Geralt may want to protect Ciri from the mysterious power inside of her as much as from the forces outside the walls of Kaer Morhen, but she looks like she's preparing for a fight in Season 2. The princess has given up her finery and is dressed more like a witcher than a royal. Although Geralt himself may not be the witcher training her, she's holding a sword and looks like she means business!
This next image suggests that she'll be training with a wooden sword, at least at first. The ground beneath the practice sword is dirt, whereas the shot of Ciri outside Kaer Morhen is snowy, so perhaps this second shot indicates that a time jump is on the way. Or, of course, there is simply a spot of dirt at Kaer Morhen that isn't exposed to the elements, but if Ciri is going to be skilled enough to hold her own in a fantasy saga, a time jump could give her the time to learn what she needs to know.
Yennefer of Vengerberg
Yennefer's fate at the end of Season 1 was largely uncertain after her use of fire magic at the Battle of Sodden Hill. Although Ciri asked about her after meeting Geralt, the witcher will evidently believe that Yennefer perished and move on to Kaer Morhen without her. The picture reveals that Yennefer survived and is at least upright, but her face appears somewhat scorched, and she looks absolutely drained. Throw in the fire in the background, and I'm guessing this is very shortly after the end of the battle.
Out of the fire and into the chains! Yennefer will seemingly be captured by some unfriendly forces in Season 2. She must either be very weak after her magic at Sodden Hill or there is some magic at play in keeping her captive, because her circumstances don't look great! If there is a time jump, I hope that Yennefer finds freedom sometime beforehand. At this point, I'm curious about how closely the show will follow the events of the Andrzej Sapkowski's novels.
The first season covered a number of his short stories, with the actual Witcher saga adaptation beginning with Season 2. It looks like the upcoming episodes will provide a closer look at Yennefer's activities after Sodden Hill than the books did, when the focus was more on Geralt and Ciri at the time. Unfortunately, fans likely won't find out for sure until The Witcher returns for Season 2.
Like many other shows this year, The Witcher had to halt production on its next season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the delays meaning a presumably longer wait for new episodes and at least one recasting due to scheduling. The new images are official rather than coming from a star's social media account, however, so it bodes well that progress is being made on Season 2. Dare I begin hoping for a teaser trailer with some footage before the end of the year?
The Witcher will hopefully be able to premiere in the coming year, although there is no saying exactly when it might be ready for Netflix. Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich revealed earlier in 2020 that the target launch date was 2021, and they didn't want to rush the season forward, but that was before production on Season 2 had to stop. Season 2 is also expected to release with eight episodes, matching the count for the first season.
For now, you can watch the full first season of The Witcher streaming on Netflix. If you want an idea of what could be in store sooner than whenever the show will be ready to debut, Andrzej Sapkowski's Witcher six-book saga can keep anybody busy for a while! For some viewing options to pass the time during the wait for The Witcher Season 2, check out our 2020 fall TV premiere schedule. If streaming is more your style, swing by our 2020 Netflix premiere guide.
