Netflix’s The Witcher is coming back for a second season, and production recently resumed–ahead of schedule–following a delay related to COVID-19.
Lead actor Henry Cavill, who plays Geralt on the show, has now shared an image from the set. Posted to Instagram, the picture shows the actor in his makeup chair. There is nothing unusual about that, but Cavill shared that the costume department made a slight change to his outfit for the sophomore season. Cavill will no longer wear a bald cap beneath his ivory locks. This year, he’s been outfitted with some kind of special equipment that doesn’t sound like very much fun to remove.
“No bald cap this year. Just pounds of two types of medical tape and some glue…. Removal is a joy,” Cavill said. “Jacqui and Ailbhe here, though, have the deft touch of angels. Jacqui more so an Angel of Vengeance, but that’s all part of her charm.”
Cavill also noted that he and the rest of the cast and crew are working on The Witcher Season 2 under strict health and safety guidelines due to the virus. “All of us are Covid cleared and bubbled. We get tested twice a week up here in Kaer Morhen!” he said.
Before this, a director for The Witcher Season 2 and the showrunner revealed some of the other safety measures in place, like wearing personal protective equipment and separating people with safety barriers.
In March, The Witcher became one of the first major productions in the UK to be suspended after the coronavirus outbreak. Actor Kristofer Hivju tested positive for the virus.
Showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich previously stated that Season 2 would appear sometime in 2021. “We don’t want to rush the product,” she said in January. “That doesn’t benefit anyone.” Hissrich has also suggested that the story of The Witcher Season 2 will be easier to follow than that of Season 1, which was spread over different timelines. “The story will be much more linear, now that the three characters’ stories have started to intersect,” she explained.
In addition to Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, Netflix’s The Witcher stars Freya Allan as Ciri, Anya Chalotra as Yennefer, Eamon Farren as Cahir, and Joey Batey as Jaskier. It’s based on the book series by Andrzej Sapkowski, which in turn inspired the popular video game series.
The Witcher was second only to Stranger Things Season 3 among Netflix’s most popular TV shows of 2019, so the second season has big shoes to fill.