Witcher S3 to Deviate More from the Books Despite Previous Claims
Jed | Hollywood Scholar | Mar 8, 2023 |
It was only a few short months ago when Netflix’s Witcher showrunner, Lauren Hissrich, claimed that season 3 would be “the closest thing that we’ve done as a one-to-one adaptation of the books.” Such wild claims had been made about every new season of the main series as well as at the release of every spinoff. This overused and constantly proven false claim eerily resembles Paramount’s repetitive assurances that each new season or series of Star Trek would finally be the “optimistic” show with which fans were familiar. Paramount made these proclamations about Lower Decks, Strange New Worlds, Discovery, and the early seasons of Picard. Each time, they were proved to be unequivocally false. The same is true of Lauren’s constant insistence that each new addition to her Witcher franchise would be more accurate to the books. Her most recent claim regarding season 3 has now been disproven even before the season’s release.
In an exclusive with ScreenRant, a Witcher VFX supervisor, Sébastien Francoeur, and producer Graeme Marshall revealed that season 3 will not be an accurate adaptation. Marshall said:
“We’re in the throes of delivering the final couple of episodes [of season 3]. . . I don’t think it’s anything that anyone’s read or seen before in Witcher lore. . . It’s like the novels are the guidebook, but not the Bible by any means.”
Francoeur added:
“I feel like this is where they’re . . . separate from the books is kind of allowing them to explore other storylines and other places and things like that. . . I’ve seen one of the reviews and they said it’s [Witcher: Blood Origin] even worse than The Rings of Power. The Rings of Power is amazing, so I won’t listen to those guys again.”
Not only have these creatives confirmed that Witcher season 3 will not be as accurate, as Lauren claimed, but they also have no interest in taking audience feedback into consideration for the abomination that was Blood Origin. A caveat must be made here; these creatives were contractors affiliated with both season 3 and Blood Origin. They are not Netflix employees. Their attitude towards the audience cannot be taken as proof that Netflix doesn’t care, though speculation toward that attitude is more than justifiable. However, they are still affiliated with the production and are currently working on the final episodes of season 3. Their attitude may not be transferable, but they are working on season 3, so their observations on its accuracy are legitimate enough to be taken as fact.
Every time a Hollywood creator claims that they will be giving the audience what they want next time, they have been proven false. It is a simple marketing ploy to drag out audience investment for as long as possible before their foundation of sand crumbles and their abominations collapse entirely. They must not be believed. No amount of claims that Star Trek will be optimistic or that Witcher will be accurate can counteract the evidence of the audience’s own eyes upon the release of every subsequent entry in these franchises. Most true Witcher fans and the more aware audience members knew Lauren’s claims for season 3 were false the moment they were spoken, but now we have proof.
