The Witcher TV Series Announced for Netflix
Platige Image and Netflix announced this week that the dark fantasy franchise, The Witcher, is set to receive a new TV adaptation for Netflix. The upcoming show will be an English language drama series based on the fantasy saga, created by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The Witcher is also known as a popular, award-winning series of video games based on Sapkowski’s work, which are developed by CD Projekt RED.
The story of the Witcher saga centers on a witcher named Geralt of Rivia, an elite monster hunter who has been bred for combat and develops supernatural abilities from his youth in order to battle supernatural threats. The series has become a New York Times bestselling book series and has been translated into over 20 languages. The games based on the books have sold millions of copies worldwide.
Speaking on the news in the press release, Netflix VP Erick Barmack stated, “Andrzej Sapkowski has created a rich and memorable world, at once magical and familiar. We couldn’t be more excited about bringing Netflix members around the world.”
Interestingly enough, Sapkowski will serve as a creative consultant for the TV series and will be involved on some level. This is a lot different than the video game series, which Sapkowski wasn’t involved in, other than signing over the licensing rights to CD Projekt RED for a lump sum. Speaking on the news, Sapkowski stated, “I’m thrilled that Netflix will be doing an adaptation of my stories, staying true to the source material and the themes that I have spent over thirty years writing. I’m excited about our efforts together, as well as the team assembled to shepherd these characters to life.”
Sean Daniel (The Expanse, The Mummy) and Jason Brown (The Expanse) will executive produce the show alongside Tomek Baginski and Jarek Sawko of Platige Image. Additionally, Baginski is slated to direct at least one episode per season. Daniel and Brown added in a joint statement, “The Witcher stories follow an unconventional family that comes together to fight for truth in a dangerous world. The characters are original, funny and constantly surprising and we can’t wait to bring them to life at Netflix, the perfect home for innovative storytelling.”
This is pretty exciting news. The Witcher for its more dark, adult and mature content and subject matter is likely better suited for a TV series, where it can go as far with the material as it needs to. If it were a theatrical movie, there would be way too many financial risks for the show and likely too many compromises would have to be made.
We started production of the series based on “The Witcher” in coop. with @NetflixUS and SeanDanielCompany. Tomek #Bagiński one of the dir! pic.twitter.com/hYXWCHySOF
— Platige Image (@PlatigeImage) May 17, 2017