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"The Witcher" Season 2 Production Halted; First Major Made-In-UK TV Drama Shuttered Over Coronavirus Concerns [REPORT]

As the coronavirus pandemic rages on, Netflix has halted production on the second season of Henry Cavill/Anya Chalotra/Freya Allan-starrer The Witcher for at least two weeks – making it the first major television drama production in the UK to be shuttered over the virus.

Deadline Hollywood reports exclusively that the production crew at Arborfield Studios were notified last night via emal about the decision, and that they will continue to be paid by the streaming service during the down time.

A source close to the production had this to say to Deadline:

"We have made the decision, effective immediately, to pause production for two weeks during this difficult time… this will allow everyone the time to make informed decisions about how to move forward.

The coronavirus has raised challenging issues for everyone working on set on productions for Netflix. We are very grateful for all the work everyone has done to keep cast and crew safe during this pandemic."

Netflix's The Witcher season 2 welcomes Kim Bodnia (Killing Eve) as Vesemir, Kristofer Hivju (Game of Thrones), as Nivellen, Yasen Atour (Young Wallender) as Coen, Agnes Bjorn as Vereena, Paul Bullion (Peaky Blinders) as Lambert, Thue Ersted Rasmussen (Fast and Furious 9) as Eskel, Aisha Fabienne Ross (The Danish Girl) as Lydia, and newcomer Mecia Simson as Francesca.

"The reaction to season one of The Witcher set a high bar for adding new talent for the second season. Sophie Holland and her casting team have once again found the very best people to embody these characters, and in the hands of these accomplished directors, we're excited to see these new stories come to life."

– Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, Showrunner/Executive Producer

Stephen Surjik (Netflix's The Umbrella Academy) has been tapped to direct the season's first two episodes, with Sarah O'Gorman (Cursed) directing the third and fourth episodes, Ed Bazalgette (The Last Kingdom) directing the 5th and 8th episodes, and Geeta Patel (Meet the Patels) will dirrect the 6th and 7th episodes.

The first season of Netflix's The Witcher also starred MyAnna Buring (Kill List) as Tissaia, Tom Canton (Good Karma Hospital) as Filavandrel, Lilly Cooper (Peterloo) as Murta, Jeremy Crawford (Titans) as Yarpin Zigrin, Eamon Farren (Twin Peaks) as Cahir, Mahesh Jadu (Marco Polo) as Vilgefortz, Terence Maynard (Cursed) as Artorius, Lars Mikkelson (House of Cards) as Stregobor, Mimi Ndiweni (Black Earth Rising) as Fringilla Vigo, Royce Pierreson (Judy) as Istredd, Wilson Radjou-Pujalte (Hunter Street) as Dara, Anna Shaffer (Harry Potter) as Triss Merigold, and Therica Wilson Read (Young Wallender) as Sabrina.

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