The Witcher: Season 2 ending explained and season 3 expectations

In true The Witcher fashion, season two of the series has left a lot of open-ended storylines, which will allow season three to explore new avenues and characters.

The Witcher first premiered in 2019, and the first season was received with mixed reviews.

However, seemingly, the second season of the series made up for the lukewarm reception of the first season following a two-year delay between the seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the effect it had on the entertainment industry.

In light of its growing popularity, fans are hotly anticipating the third season which was confirmed when Netflix confirmed season two of the series in September 2021.

Much of what to expect in the upcoming season has been kept mum, however, the season two finale did tease the direction that the new season might take.

What is The Witcher?

The Witcher is a Netflix original period fantasy series which is based on the series of fantasy novels by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski of the same name.

The series was developed by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, with the premise of the series being, “Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts.”

Henry Cavill fronts the series as the title character, Geralt of Rivia, while Freya Allen and Anya Chalotra, are the main supporting leads as Ciri and Yennefer respectively.

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The Witcher: Season 2 ending explained and season 2 expectations

Arguably, the biggest take away from season two was the new formation of Geralt, Ciri and Yennefer working together.

This after the great battle at the end of season two, which saw Yennefer sacrificing herself to become the Deathless Mother’s new vessel to save Ciri, and with Geralt’s help, all three characters returned to the real world, which saw Yennefer get her powers back after not having them for the majority of the season.

The new formation leaves room for growth and the exploration of new dynamics in the third season, especially as season two introduced new characters.

Showrunner, Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, kept mum when speaking on what fans can expect in the new season by instead stating, “I feel like seasons 1 and 2 have been laying the playing field for everything huge that’s about to happen.”

Going on to add, “But the creative process is now really just starting. We have the scripts, and now we’ll bring directors on, the actors back in, and really start delving in deeper and reflecting back and making sure that it’s the perfect season.”

Lauren Schmidt on season 3 expectations

In October 2021 during the Lucca Comics and Games 2021 Festival which was hosted in Italy, as the countdown to the release of the second season, its plot was already teased.

Lauren Schimdt Hissrich, the series’ showrunner, was more open about teasers about the third season explaining that, “What I will say about the third season.”

Going on to add, “The writers are back in Los Angeles diligently working while I am here getting to do this, so I'm grateful for them […] It's a really fun season, and it follows a particular book very closely, has a lot of action, some death… some death.”

What is The Witcher’s season 3’s premise?

While it has not been confirmed, it is believed that The Witcher season three will be based on the fourth book in the novel series titled The Time for Contempt, which was released in 1995.

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The premise of the book affirms the ending of season two as it will see Yennefer, Ciri, and Geralt travel to Aretuza. Their travels lead them to where a coup will take place, forcing this trio to separate again.

However, other details might change as the series does take liberties with the chronology and events that take place in the book, like Yennefer losing her powers during season two, when in the book she was temporarily blinded.

When is The Witcher season 3 coming?

There has been no confirmed release date for the third season of The Witcher. However, that does not mean that the series will take another two years to be released.

Steve Gaub, who serves as one of the executive producers of the series, took to Instagram in January 2022 to reveal the production had started on season three of the fantasy series.

In subsequent posts, he has also teased the various locations the team is traveling to in order to continue to expand the world of the story. Therefore, the projected release is the last quarter of 2022, or the beginning of 2023.

Final thoughts

The Witcher has grown in its popularity with Netflix viewers from the first season to the second season.

This is as the series worked on improving the shortfalls of the first, including confusing timelines, Geralt’s almost non-existent dialogue in the first and production design issues.

In light of the growth and popularity questions on when the third season will be released, this is as the third season was confirmed even ahead of the season two premiere, fans are hoping that season three will come in the last quarter of the year or the beginning of 2023.

However, Netflix is still mum on the matter.