Although The Witcher‘s second season has not yet been announced, several characters have already been confirmed for the show. The series will gain several additions to its cast and bring many characters who won over the audience in the series’ debut season.
Here you will find out who will return in The Witcher‘s next season, according to what has been announced by the cast and Netflix itself, as well as those who will make their debut. Let’s get started, shall we?
New: Nivellen
Nivellen is a cursed character who acts as a sort of The Witcher‘s adaptation of the Beast from Beauty and the Beast. Â In the short story A Grain of Truth, he appears in the first book, which features several tales about Geralt‘s adventures.
In the series, Nivellen left his story for the second season. Kristofer Hivju will play the character, and according to the character description, he should keep much of his characterization in the books. He was described as a charismatic, smart, and funny man who came from an aristocratic family and was cursed for crimes he committed in the past.
Old: Geralt and Ciri
Of course, the most obvious return is that of the series’ most prominent duo, Geralt (Henry Cavill) and Ciri (Freya Allan). For those who don’t remember, after many mismatches, the two finally met at the end of the first season.
In the second season, we may see a bit more of Ciri‘s training and their interactions with other wizards, as the pair’s journey will take them to Kaer Morhen, where the wizards of the School of the Wolf are trained.
New: Vereena
An essential character in the tale in which Nivellen appears, Vereena, is Beauty in Sapkwoski‘s version of Beauty and the Beast. In the series, Agnes Born will bring the character to life.
Beautiful and fragile, Vereena also shows that appearances can be deceiving, being capable of brutal violence when threatened.
Old: Yennefer
Like the Geralt and Ciri duo, Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) was already expected to return, considering the importance of the character.
During the first season, the sorceress’s path took her in different directions than Geralt, but it is possible (and many fans hope) that we will see Yen alongside Ciri and Geralt at some point.
New: Eskel, Lambert and Vesemir
As mentioned, Geralt and Ciri will possibly meet other witches from the School of the Wolf in The Witcher’s second season. Among the confirmed names, fans of the franchise will find some well-known characters that we will finally see in the series.
Basil Eidenbenz will play Eskel, a Geralt close friend in both the books and the games. Lambert, another well-known character famous for his sharp tongue, will be played by Paul Bullion.
To round off the known witches, we have Vesemir, the oldest monster hunter of the School of Wolf, a kind of father figure to Geralt. Kim Bodnia will bring the character to life.
Old: Jaskier
The bard who captivated audiences with his humor and personality is also a confirmed presence. It is unknown precisely what Jaskier (Joey Batey) will be up to since he and Geralt ended the first season going their separate ways. Still, as another series’ highlights, the character’s return is already more than confirmed.
New: Coen
Another wizard from the School of the Wolf will be introduced in the second season, although this is a character that fans of the games will not recognize. Who got the role of Coen was Yasen Atour.
In the books, this witch helps Geralt train Ciri, and this should also be his role in the series, as he was described as a deadly warrior with a sword who will train a young apprentice.
Old: Witchers
The dean of Aretuza, Tissaia de Vries (MyAnna Buring), already has a real presence in The Witcher’s second season. Besides her, we will see other sorceresses like Fringilla Vigo (Mimi Ndiweni), Sabrina Glevissig (Therica Wilson Read), and, of course, Triss Merigold (Anna Shaffer).
A surprising return is that of Myrtle (Lilly Cooper). Being just one of the newcomers that Yennefer meets upon returning to Aretuza, she hasn’t shown up much. Nevertheless, her comeback has been confirmed.
New: Philippa Eilhart
Philippa Eilhart is a mighty sorceress and a highly anticipated character, one of the few who has polymorph powers and can transform into an owl.
The character will be in the next season of the series, where she will be played by actress Cassie Clare (Brave New World). Besides being powerful, she has great involvement in The Witcher universe’s political issues, especially concerning the kingdom of Redania, since she is an advisor to King Vizimir.
Old: Yarpen Zigrin
The dwarf that Geralt meets while participating in the green dragon hunt in the first season, Yarpen Zigrin (Jeremy Crawford), has a similar introduction in the books. However, he has other appearances throughout the franchise. Having been confirmed in the upcoming season, this may also happen in the Netflix series.
New: Sigismund Dijkstra
Netflix announced that actor Graham McTavish would play Sigismund Dijkstra in the Witcher’s second season. Yet another character that both fans of the games and books will recognize. Dijkstra’s announcement was also highly anticipated due to his role in the plot.
Like Philippa (and being a character very closely related to her), Dijkstra holds a vital position in Redania’s politics. He’s one of King Vizimir’s leading advisors and a man of significant influence in the country.
Old: Filavandrel
The free elves leader, Filavandrel (Tom Canton), was introduced when he meets Geralt and Jaskier in an episode explaining the elves’ situation on the Continent. Although he initially believes that the wizard and the bard needed to die for discovering how the elves were surviving from theft, he eventually changes his mind and lets the duo go.
New: Francesca Findabair
A powerful elven sorceress, Francesca Findabair is described as the “most beautiful woman in the world,” in addition to her extreme intelligence. Model Mecia Simson was chosen for the role in the series.
In the books, Francesca becomes a very prominent character regarding the politics on the Continent. Rumors suggest that the second season will deal more with elven issues.
New: Violet and Ba’lian
In addition to adapting characters from the books, the series will bring in a few more entirely new characters, such as Violet and Ba’lian.
Violet has been described as “a girl whose playful and eccentric behavior hides an intelligent and sadistic character.” Although not much is known about her, Violet will be in at least three episodes and should play a significant supporting role. Actress Carmel Laniado will play her.
As for Ba’lian, nothing has been revealed other than that he will be an original character played by Kevin Doyle.
Old: Vilgefortz
Another important character we will see again is Vilgefortz (Mahesh Jadu). Although his introduction doesn’t really show it, as the wizard seems to want to defend magic users from being forced to serve Nilfgaard, by the end of the season, it is revealed that things are not quite like that when Vilgefortz kills one of his companions instead of helping him.
With this major revelation in the first season, we already expected that the character would return, perhaps even without holding back on his real intentions from now on.
New: Lydia
A character closely related to Vilgefortz, Lydia, will be introduced in the upcoming season, where actress Aisha Fabienne Ross will play the role.
Lydia will be a helper for Vilgefortz, who carries scars from an experiment gone wrong. The character’s description also said that she would perform a terrible deed.
Old: Cahir
Eamon Farren will be back in the role of Cahir, another antagonist that we will see again next season. The knight of Nilfgaard, who tries to capture Ciri in the first part of the series, was last seen during the Battle of Sodden Hill when he sees Yennefer setting his forces on fire.
New: Rience
Another character connected to Vilgefortz, Rience, was an apprentice to the wizard in the books. He is one of several characters who, throughout the saga, assume an antagonistic role in trying to capture Ciri.
It is possible that his future role will not be much different in the series. His presence has already been confirmed, and Chris Fulton will play him.
Previous: Stregobor
Introduced when we first met the story that gave Geralt the Butcher of Blaviken title, Stregobor (Lars Mikkelsen) has had his role expanded in the series and participated in several wizards decisions. With his confirmation in the upcoming season, it appears that his role will continue to be developed from the books, where he only appears when Geralt faces Renfri in Blaviken.
New: Nenneke
One of the recently announced characters, Nenneke, will be introduced to the public in the upcoming season, being lived by Adjoa Andoh. The name may not be very familiar to fans of the games, but those who know the books certainly know who the character is.
In Sapkowski‘s work, Nenneke is a priestess of Melitele who has known Geralt since he was very young and has helped Jaskier and Yennefer on a few occasions.
Old: Dara
Wilson Radjou-Pujalte will return in Dara‘s role, the elf who, in the first season, befriends Ciri and travels alongside her until they leave the forest of Brokilon and experience even more hardship because the Nilfgaardians are seeking the girl. Despite deciding that he could not continue with Ciri, it is known that the character will appear again.
New: Codringher and Fenn
A duo of famous lawyers who appear in both the books and The Witcher’s first game, Codringher, and Fenn, have a reputation for doing any job and solving any case for the right price.
In the series, Simon Callow will be Codringher, while Liz Carr will be Fenn.
