Just a few days after Netflix halted all ongoing production for shows made in North America, it appears that the streaming service is doing the same for The Witcher season 2, which had been in production in the UK at Arborfield Studios, near London. Production is on pause for the next two weeks.
“We have made the decision, effective immediately, to pause production for two weeks during this difficult time,” a source close to the production team tells Deadline. “This will allow everyone the time to make informed decisions about how to move forward.” The crew will continue to be paid during the hiatus.
All Netflix productions in North America are on hold, even including flagship shows like Stranger Things. Netflix’s decisions on coronavirus precautions throughout the rest of the world are being handled on a case-by-case basis, and The Witcher – produced by Netflix in-house – is the first major show in the UK to be affected. Deadline reports that Netflix is also encouraging its third-party productions to take a two-week break in light of the outbreak.
The Witcher season 2 has been slated for a vague 2021 release, which gives a wide window for the series to launch even with a delay – but given the current uncertainties around the outbreak, the break in production could certainly last longer than two weeks.
Check out the best Witcher 3 mods if you’re looking for something to do over the next few weeks – there’s never been a better time to dive back into a massive RPG.