The Witcher showrunner and executive producer Lauren Schmidt Hissrich recently opened up about the deleted scenes that she wished she had kept in Season 1, both of which revolve around fan-favourite character Yennefer.
In an interview with Pure Fandom, Hissrich admitted “so many scenes had to be cut from the final episodes”, as she detailed two particular scenes that she regretted removing from the hit Netflix show – including one cut clip that championed female friendship through the women of Aretuza, and another that showed Yennefer meeting a young Triss Merigold for the first time.
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“We had a lovely scene in Episode 103 [Betrayer Moon] where Yennefer, Fringilla, and Sabrina all discussed how they felt about their transformations, and looking back, I wish we could have kept it,” she told the outlet. “It was such a gorgeous example of female friendship, and it also would have served to ground Fringilla a bit more before she joined Nilfgaard.
“We also filmed a scene of Yen meeting a very young Triss, who’d just arrived at Aretuza; it served to show how far Yennefer had come in her years at Aretuza, and created a sense of mentorship between these two sorceresses. Looking ahead at some stories unfolding in Season 2, I wish we still had those scenes! But I’m proud of what we accomplished.”
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While Hissrich noted that the addition of these scenes may have helped viewers to understand some of the characters’ motivations ahead of Season 2, it appears that the next chapter is already plotted out, as she revealed some of the fantasy elements we can expect to see in the upcoming season, including “a crop of new monsters, a new cost to magic, and new and unexpected pairings of our favourite characters.”
Hissrich previously revealed all the scripts for The Witcher Season 2 had already been written, though she told us that the pages are “living breathing things,” which might go through some changes during pre-production. She also explained that the team are making sure they have “a lot of built-in cushion time” so they don’t have to “cram anything in at the last minute,” that’s why we won’t be catching up with Geralt and his comrades until 2021.
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For more on The Witcher, check out our review of the first season and episode ratings, read our round-up of IGN staff reviews for additional insight, and find out why Netflix decided to adapt the books and not the games.
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Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.
Source: IGN.com The Witcher Showrunner Shares Her Favourite Season 1 Deleted Scenes