Netflix announces The Witcher prequel series Blood Origin

Show will be set 1,200 years before the time of Geralt of Rivia

A prequel to The Witcher is in development at Netflix, the streaming service has announced.

The Witcher: Blood Origin will take the form of a six-episode miniseries, and will be set 1,200 years before the events of The Witcher.

The series will be shot in the UK. No casting details have yet been announced.

According to Netflix, Blood Origin will the the story of how “the worlds of monsters, men and elves merged into one, and the first Witcher came to be”.

Declan de Barra will serve as executive producer and showrunner. Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, who acted as executive producer on seasons one and two of The Witcher, will also executive produce.

The first season of The Witcher debuted on the streaming service last year.

The show is adapted from Andrzej Sapkowski’s hit fantasy book series of the same name, which was also made into an acclaimed series of video games.

In the series, Henry Cavill plays Geralt of Rivia, a flaxen-haired demon hunter known as a “Witcher”.

The Witcher was, according to Netflix’s own figures, a commercial success, but critical reactions to the series were mixed.

Cavill recently revealed that he “thrives” on criticism of his own acting, and has spent time poring over online criticism of The Witcher‘s first season.