The Witcher season 2 is likely to premiere sometime in 2021 and if it does, the dark-leaning fantasy drama could have an unusual issue with portraying certain villains. The Netflix show – based on the eponymous novels by author Andrzej Sapkowski and the video games by CD Projekt Red – follows Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill) on his journey as a Witcher, which is a term for pariah-status monster hunters who were brutally trained and experimented on in their youth. In many respects, The Witcher is a dark and tragic show, chronicling violence and social alienation alongside its magic and fantasy elements.

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It’s not just the show’s depiction of the lore that’s disturbing, since the games provoke plenty of visual unease as well. In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, gamers are introduced to The Crones – also known as the Ladies of the Wood – who are three ill-boding Velen arc antagonists. These witch sisters, named Whispess, Brewess, and Weavess, are just as terrifying in their actions as they are to look at. They feed on human flesh (often that of children) and wreak as much havoc among the village as they do offer the occasional help.

But Brewess and Whispess also constantly don sinister-looking masks, with one looking like a face-covering basket and the other being a stitched cloth respectively. Though Weavess doesn’t wear a mask, it would be better if she did; this The Witcher character looks like a stereotypical storybook witch (prominent nose, facial warts, and all) with an eye that appears, by human standards, painfully swollen and infected. So the question becomes is there a way for The Witcher Netflix series to bring these creatures into live-action without completely revolting viewers?

Though the series doesn’t shy away from gore or disturbing imagery, live-action renderings of the Ladies of the Wood would be difficult to pull off, especially for any kind of prolonged story arc. Between Brewess’ bloated, rotten-looking skin and each sister’s witch hunt era execution symbology – one carries a noose around her neck, another a lock for drowning, and another uses her mask to hide burns – bringing the Crones to life for The Witcher‘s season 2 would have to be been done judiciously.

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Despite how horrid they are, these Velen-hailing ladies certainly aren’t the only viscerally unnerving characters/plotlines that could be used for the second season – especially from The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The game also features a man named Alexander who conducts human experiments on the deserted island Fyke Isle, and there’s also the horrifying torture and murder of escorts at the hands of crime boss Whoreson Junior. The Crones are something of an iconic trio in the universe of The Witcher, but if they turn up on the Netflix show hopefully they don’t inspire audiences to switch off.

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Lindsey DeRoche
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Lindsey DeRoche is a TV and movie features writer for Screen Rant. She received a BA in English, with a concentration in writing, from Plymouth State University in 2018. She’s had a passion for reading, writing, TV, and movies since her early years.

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