Studio delays are nothing new when it comes to production. Whether it’s the budget or time constraints, something always seems to keep your favorite shows moving further and further down the calendar. This year COVID-19 is yet another particularly troubling reason to halt filming, and the main reason tv shows aren’t coming soon to a screen near you. The pandemic guarantees no release window, but merely acts as a place holder should the virus happen to not show up for dress rehearsal.
AMC’s The Walking Dead, FX’s Fargo, as well as the first string of Marvel-related Disney+ Series have all been collectively slated to resume filming much later than anticipated. While the virus is very much a growing concern and a pain, speaking frankly, gone are the initial scares that plagued shows like NBC’s Blacklist from finishing a season; currently, shows are mainly being delayed due to any viral outbreak onset rather than purely based on exposure to the staffers.
The second season of The Witcher has now become one such case for the second time, the first being when actor Kristofer Hivju contracted covid earlier in the year. Netflix’s popular fantasy epic, based on the book and video game franchises respectively, has once again seen such a delay following a few members of the production staff testing positive for the virus. Neither the titular Witcher himself Henry Cavill nor fellow leads Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan are amongst the infected. Regardless, showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich has responded via Twitter that everything is under control and the members that were infected are now being socially isolated as well as the team taking every necessary precaution to ensure that everyone remains healthy. Once two weeks have passed the show will resume development pending any unforeseen events following this one.
Geralt of Rivia is set to continue his monster-slaying adventures come 2021 as well as being companied by a prequel series subtitled The Witcher: Blood Origin should the virus not loiter around the makeup room.
