What is the current status of the wildly popular fantasy series? Here is everything we know so far about the potential release date of
The Witcher Season 4.
As the hourglass streak ends on Netflix’s 2023–24 summer streaming season, the anticipation within The Witcher fandom has reached new heights, as they have been speculating whether their favorite show will be returning in October 20203 or not. Especially after learning that the real Ciri is saved by a bandit group known as the Rats, who let her join them after she murders her captor, marking her first human kill. When the Rats ask her name, Ciri introduces herself as “Falka.”
This cliffhanger has left many speculating about how the story will progress further in terms of the characterization of Geralt of Rivia and Crown Princess Ciri of Cintra. So, if you are wondering the same, then to avoid any further confusion about the potential release date of the highly anticipated fourth season. We have compiled all the latest information that has been floating over the web in the face of rumors in order to give clarity to our beloved readers.
Here is everything we currently know about The Witcher Season 4.
When will The Witcher Season 4 premiere on Netflix?
Initially, the early renewal announcement excited the fandom, and it looked like plans to secure the series for another season were moving rather smoothly.
But sadly, now things have taken a turn for the worse as the production of the fourth season has been on a temporary halt for a while due to Hollywood’s dual strikes, out of which WGA has been resolved, but SAG-AFTRA is still ongoing. Due to this, delays and major rescheduling in the release window of many of Netflix’s original shows have been considered, and unfortunately, this list includes The Witcher Season 4.
As a result, there is no chance left that the fourth season will premiere in October, let alone in the remaining months of 2023!
Moreover, to make matters worse, according to Production Weekly, Season 4 has been delayed until 2024, with one of the reasons being that production and post-production take many months to complete, and there is no chance that it will be completed within a short notice as it will be very rushed, which might result in poor results, which no one wants to happen.
Due to this, we predict that the ideal release window for the fourth season will be set sometime in mid-to late-2024, just like the prior installments, in order to be consistent with the episode rollout without a major hiatus so that the series can move forward with a fifth season if it is renewed.
Of course! This can only happen if the actor’s strikes conclude by late 2023 for the production to start soon in order to create new scripts and get actors to resume their work for producing new episodes, for which the fans will have to wait sometime!
We would like to stress the fact that the release window is still subject to change since the chances of the series extending until 2024 aren’t the only option. Many new reports have also speculated that it is more realistic to expect a release in 2025 because the strikes have already caused major delays in the season’s meticulous pre-production stage, which includes the completion of scripts.
Hence, more details will be confirmed later. Until then, the fans will have to binge-watch the prior seasons to be up to date with the plotlines.
It’s official: The Witcher is returning for Season 4, and Henry Cavill will be handing his swords to Liam Hemsworth as the new Geralt of Rivia after Season 3. Welcome to the Witcher family, @LiamHemsworth!
Read more: https://t.co/ABQMdqkzXX pic.twitter.com/xyIaRBbiRT
— The Witcher (@witchernetflix) October 29, 2022
The Witcher Season 4 Plot: What to expect in the new season?
The series is based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s best-selling book series, and the show follows Geralt as he travels the Continent fighting anything and everything that goes bump in the night, from ghouls to bruxas and more. Along the way, he forms an unlikely family with the powerful sorceress Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) and Cintran princess Ciri (Freya Allan) as they evade the mages, monarchs, and monsters who seek to capture Ciri.
The story begins with Geralt of Rivia, Crown Princess Ciri of Cintra, and the sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg at different periods in time. Exploring formative events that shape their identities throughout the course of the first season before merging into a single timeline.
Convinced that Yennefer’s life was lost at the Battle of Sodden, Geralt of Rivia brings Princess Cirilla to the safest place he knows, his childhood home of Kaer Morhen. While the Continent’s kings, elves, humans, and demons strive for supremacy outside its walls, he must protect the girl from something far more dangerous: the mysterious power she possesses inside.
Additionally, showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich has broken down where we left things at the end of Season 3 and how it sets the stage for Season 4. The plotlines will be expanded from the third season’s finale episode, “The Cost of Chaos,” which was directed by Bola Ogun and written by Mike Ostrowski and Troy Dangerfield. The final episode revolves around the fateful events at Aretuza, where Geralt and Yennefer struggle to pick up the pieces and reunite their family as war comes to the Continent.
*Spoiler’s Alert*
To address the fate of Geralt in Season 4, “His side is Ciri and Yen, and he will do anything [for them],” Schmidt Hissrich told Tudum, explaining why Geralt fights off the corrupt soldiers in the finale as he heads to find Ciri. “He will get involved in anything he has to get into in order to make that happen.”
“This is the beginning of what fans [of the books] will know as the Hanza. It’s the group traveling with Geralt for the rest of the books. This becomes his newfound family,” said Hissrich. “He begins to realize that he needs help to get Yennefer and Ciri back, and when you need to help, you actually have to give of yourself as well. So, we start to watch the Hanza build and start to see that there are some amazing emotional connections to come there as well.”
She continued, “It’s really fun. That’s still a struggle for Geralt. This is a man who has always claimed he doesn’t have emotions because he can’t. And we clearly know that is not true. We’ll start to see those boundaries tested again in Season 4.”
Just like Geralt, Ciri also has a newfound family in the Rats. “I know for Freya, it’s so exciting for her to be working with people her own age,” said Schmidt Hissrich. “[The Rats] are a band of misfit teenagers, and they get up to all sorts of fun and all sorts of trouble. It’s a completely different side of Ciri than we’ve seen before.”
“Did we want her to choose to give up her powers — meaning that she has them, but she’s not going to access them because she wants to rid herself of her prior identity? Or did she actually magically relinquish those powers and she no longer has access to them? You’ll have to watch Season 4 to wait and see which is true,” said Schmidt Hissrich.
“She can either continue living in the past or she can, at the end of her desert experience, push into the future. And she makes the choice for her future. I think in Season 4, that’s a decision she’s going to keep coming back to: How do you forget where you came from? And do you actually want to?”
As for Yennefer’s new role for Season 4, “Now the Brotherhood and her mother figure — her leader — are gone, how does she want to start to lead? And what does she want to be within the magical society of this world?” Schmidt Hissrich wondered. “She has some big choices to make.”
Finally, let’s talk about Vilgefortz’s disloyalty set up in Season 4, “More of [the mechanics of his plan] will be revealed in Season 4,” said Schmidt Hissrich. “The questions that our characters need to be asking [going into] Season 4 [are], ‘Why is he doing this?’ and ‘How is he doing this?’ When did Vilgefortz find Emhyr? Was it recently, when Ciri’s power first started to explode? Because we know that Emhyr came for her in Season 1 and burned down Cintra. Was Vilgefortz involved in that?”
Schmidt Hissrich continued to add, “We want people to go back and start looking at all of the clues and breadcrumbs that we have laid out to see how these two people align. Because clearly, there’s a lot more going on with Emhyr, Vilgefortz, and their past — and their future.”
The Witcher Season 4 Cast Updates: Who will return?
In Season 4, Liam Hemsworth will step in as the titular monster-hunter Geralt of Rivia, the role Henry Cavill originated in the first three seasons. The two actors have already confirmed this major cast update on their respective social media handles:
“My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures and alas, I will be laying down my medallion and my swords for Season 4,” said Cavill in a statement. “In my stead, the fantastic Mr. Liam Hemsworth will be taking up the mantle of the White Wolf. As with the greatest of literary characters, I pass the torch with reverence for the time spent embodying Geralt and enthusiasm to see Liam’s take on this most fascinating and nuanced of men. Liam, good sir, this character has such a wonderful depth to him, enjoy diving in and seeing what you can find.”
Liam Hemsworth is also thrilled about this new adventure. He said, “As a Witcher fan I’m over the moon about the opportunity to play Geralt of Rivia,” he said in a statement. “Henry Cavill has been an incredible Geralt, and I’m honored that he’s handing me the reins and allowing me to take up the White Wolf’s blades for the next chapter of his adventure. Henry, I’ve been a fan of yours for years and was inspired by what you brought to this beloved character. I may have some big boots to fill, but I’m truly excited to be stepping into The Witcher world.”
Keeping these changes in mind, it seems logical that the remaining cast might also be up to change, which includes Freya Allan as Cirilla, Anya Chalotra as Yennefer, Joey Batey as Jaskier, Mimî M. Khayisa as Fringilla, Eamon Farren as Cahir, Anna Shaffer as Triss Merigold, Royce Pierreson as Istredd, Wilson Mbomio as Dara, Mahesh Jadu as Vilgefortz, Graham McTavish as Sigismund Dijkstra, Cassie Clare as Philippa Eilhart, Bart Edwards as Emperor Emyhr, Hugh Skinner as Prince Radovid, and Therica Wilson-Read as Sabrina, and Cal Watson as Eva. We’ll just have to wait for official confirmation.
Other cast includes Christelle Elwin as Mistle, Rochelle Rose as Margarita Laux-Antille, Frances Pooley as Teryn (fake Ciri), Meng’er Zhang as Milva, Mecia Simson as Francesca, Safiyya Ingar as Keira, Ben Radcliffe as Giselher, Fabian McCallum as Kayleigh, Aggy K. Adams as Iskra, Connor Crawford as Asse, and Juliette Alexandra as Reef. A few cast members who will not be back include Tom Canton, MyAnna Buring, Ed Birch, Kaine Zajaz, Terence Maynard, Robbie Amell, and Sam Woolf. At last, the series is executive produced and executive produced by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich.
The Witcher Season 4 Official Episode Count: Where to stream?
The forthcoming season is expected to have the same range of about 8 episodes with a runtime of 47 to 67 minutes, which are expected to be released on the same day, just like the prior seasons. We speculate that it is intended to follow the same framework as the prior seasons to be consistent. The official episode title and synopsis of these episodes have also not been revealed to avoid early spoilers. For the time being, we recommend that viewers follow the show’s social media handle to stay up-to-date on the latest details about the fourth season.
When Season 4 of The Witcher draws close to its release date, the series will be available exclusively on Netflix, with all previous three seasons also accessible on the streaming platform with a range of membership options. The video quality and quantity of screens you can use to stream Netflix simultaneously depend on the package you choose. The basic membership starts at $9.99/month, and the standard membership starts at $15.49/month at no additional cost, with any of their services offered to subscribers around the globe.
Never lost, always found 🖤 pic.twitter.com/ECs4pD0LYF
— The Witcher (@witchernetflix) August 16, 2023
The Witcher Season 4 Official Trailer: Has it been released?
Netflix hasn’t released any official trailer for the fourth season, as the production has reportedly been delayed until next year. Hence, for the time being, fans should check out the third season trailer to recap all the events that have transpired so far. As the third season is inspired by the second installment in Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher book series, “Time of Contempt,” in which we finally see our hero reckoning with his feelings after two seasons of steely, tough-guy detachment.
The story follows, “As monarchs, mages, and beasts of the Continent compete to capture her, Geralt takes Ciri of Cintra into hiding, determined to protect his newly reunited family against those who threaten to destroy it. Entrusted with Ciri’s magical training, Yennefer leads them to the protected fortress of Aretuza, where she hopes to discover more about the girl’s untapped powers; instead, they discover they’ve landed in a battlefield of political corruption, dark magic, and treachery. They must fight back, put everything on the line – or risk losing each other forever.”
Last but not least, the third season reports an 86% approval rating with an average rating of 7.1/10, based on 36 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. The website reads: “Capably shouldered by Henry Cavill’s gruff charm, The Witcher’s plotty third season pays a fittingly fond farewell to this particular Geralt of Rivia.” On the other hand, Metacritic calculated a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating “generally favorable reviews.”
While you wait for The Witcher Season 4 to premiere on Netflix, share your thoughts on what you expect to see in the new season in the comment section below.