After a hugely successful first season, Netflix’s The Witcher is going through a bit of a production nightmare. Had everything gone to plan, the second run would’ve aired in late 2020, roughly a year after the last one. But COVID-19 hit the show particularly hard, with confirmed cases on set causing everything to shut down and national lockdowns resulting in months of delays. By December, the shoot had resumed and it looked as if the series might be in the clear, until star Henry Cavill injured his leg.
The Toronto Sun reported that Cavill was shooting a scene on an “assault course” when he suffered an injury to his hamstring. This left him unable to walk properly in heavy armor and limited what they could film. Fortunately, the production was scheduled to go on a brief hiatus over Christmas and New Year anyway, so that may not impact things too much.
Now, Cavill has provided an update via Instagram, explaining that he’s “getting back into the groove” with some short runs, saying:
We are in lockdown here the UK so I’m using my once a day outdoor exercise to go for my first jog since my hamstring injury! (More on that another time). It wasn’t fast, and it certainly was far, but it has been a major step in my recovery, and my first step to getting back into the groove after a Christmas that may have involved more than a few cups of mulled wine, and an exceptionally fat Turkey.
But even if Cavill’s back on his feet, The Witcher might not be able to resume filming. The new mutated COVID-19 variant has caused a huge spike in cases and deaths in the UK and the country is on strict lockdown. Government rules advise staying indoors as much as possible, leaving only to get food or (as Cavill is) for exercise. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said this is likely to continue for at least the next month, which may end up pushing The Witcher‘s second season back into 2022.
That’s got to be disappointing to both Netflix and the show’s millions of fans who’re eager for the hit series to maintain momentum. Still, we may yet see animated spinoff The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf in 2021, which will depict the origin story of Geralt’s mentor and friend Vesemir. In addition, we’re getting a live-action prequel show The Witcher: Blood Origin, which will reveal the origins of this strange universe, though that’s some time away from going before the cameras.
In the meantime, let’s hope Cavill continues to recover and that The Witcher gets back on track soon.
