The Witcher season 3 release dates, trailers and everything we know

Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher season 3, with a cloud of smoke behind him — (Image credit: Netflix)

Fans should be eager to watch The Witcher season 3 — given the epic cliffhanger of The Witcher season 2 — but we've got some bad news about that. No — not that it's not happening. The Witcher season 3 is almost here, too.

In fact, Netflix seems all in on the wide world of Witchering, with a prequel series Blood Origin starring Michelle Yeoh (which was bad) and a Witcher kids show in the pipeline. But, just as how Stranger Things season 4 had a long wait, we waited a while before The Witcher season 3 part 1.

So what do we know about the next season, where we expect Ciri to continue to evade The Wild Hunt? Let's dive right in now, shall we?

The Witcher season 3 release dates confirmed

Yes, you read that right. The Witcher season 3 has two release dates: June 29th and July 27th, 2023.

So, that means the first half is already out, and you can read our The Witcher season 3 part 1 review right now.

At Netflix Tudum 2023, Henry Cavill revealed that The Witcher season 3 is due in summer 2023. The Witcher: Blood Origin prequel series is due earlier.

The final The Witcher season 3 trailer arrives

Doom and gloom take the stage in the final trailer for The Witcher season 3, and Ciri calls herself a Witcher at its end!

Ciri looks like she's finally ready in the official trailer for The Witcher season 3. The Wild Hunt also appear. Check it out for yourself:

In The Witcher season 3's teaser trailer, we see Geralt approaching something that gave him "true fear." Ciri's also on the run from the Wild Hunt and Yen is also split off from the others.

The Witcher season 3 confirmed

Back in September, at Netflix TUDUM (think Nintendo Direct, but for Netflix), the streaming service revealed that The Witcher season 3 had been greenlit. The announcement also included the reveal that a second anime-style Witcher movie is coming, and the aforementioned family-friendly Witcher show is in development as well.

Netflix didn't share any news on when The Witcher season 3 was planned to arrive. Speaking of which ...

The Witcher season 3 cast speculation

Of course, we need to sound the spoiler alert warning here! Because, of course, character deaths and story points of in Witcher season 2 will impact Witcher season 3!

Henry Cavill will be back to play Geralt, Freya Allan is set to continue the role of Ciri and Anya Chalotra will reprise the role of Yennefer.

The Witcher season 2's finale also sets up Bart Edwards' return as Emhyr var Emreis, the emperor of Nilfgaard. Formerly known as Duny, and now known as the White Flame, Emhyr will be hunting Ciri.

But he's not the only one looking for her. Cassie Clare (as Philippa Eilhart) and Graham McTavish (as Sigismund Dijkstra) are also coming back, as they're teaming to hunt Ciri.Chris Fulton will also come back, as his renegade mage Rience is also hunting for Ciri.

We also expect to see Mecia Simson as Francesca Findabair. Her newborn was just slain at the command of Emhyr, and she knows that Ciri's got Elder blood. Mahesh Jadu will be back as Vilgefortz.

The Witcher season 3 plot source and speculation

What we know for sure, though, is the source material for The Witcher season 3. In the aforementioned interview, Hissrich said they're drawing from the second book in the Witcher saga, Time of Contempt, for season 3.

Ciri's in everyone's targets because of her Elder Blood, as it's been revealed that she's a descendent of an elven sorceress named Lara Dorren, and carries seriously strong magical powers.

The Witcher season 3 will deal with Emhyr as the biggest bad going forward, as he's the largest threat in the books. He's only likely to get more dangerous from here on out. That said, escaping the Wild Hunt is the other big task on the table.

Fortunately, the united strengths of Geralt and Yennefer look to continue to protect Ciri.

Oh, and we're also dealing with multiverse theory, too. Now that the powers of the monoliths surrounding The Continent are revealed to be gateways to other realms, we're guessing these remnants of the Conjunction are going to be important going forward.

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Henry was a managing editor at Tom’s Guide covering streaming media, laptops and all things Apple, reviewing devices and services for the past seven years. Prior to joining Tom's Guide, he reviewed software and hardware for TechRadar Pro, and interviewed artists for Patek Philippe International Magazine. He's also covered the wild world of professional wrestling for Cageside Seats, interviewing athletes and other industry veterans.