Yesterday, The Witcher Twitter account dropped an "ending explained" video with Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, showrunner and executive producer of The Witcher series, going into detail to explain how The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf anime film ties into the live-action series, especially Season 2. It not only explains why they went in an anime direction with this prequel story, but drops some juicy tidbits about what fans can expect in the near future from its live-action counterpart.
The first thing she discusses is the fall of Kaer Morhen (which comes at the end of the anime prequel). She talks about how bringing the scene alive in an animated format was perfect because there was no way they could shoot a live action version with "dozens of witchers...hundreds of monsters...and thousands of humans" and also do it justice given the show's current budget and resources. She also wanted to offer unique, entertaining content that could help bring anime fans into the fold, possibly expanding The Witcher universe to places that hadn't considered it before.
Hissrich also touched on important story elements coming up in the second season of the live-action show and how they interconnect with the anime. In Nightmare of the Wolf, there is a strong narrative theme of fatherhood and parental responsibility as shown through Vesemir's character and storyline. Geralt will be experiencing a similar situation with Siri in Season 2. At one point, he will take her back to Kaer Morhen and - for fans who haven't watched the anime before they start watching Season 2 - the bleak destruction may be confusing. But the anime clearly spells out how the fortress fell and why it's so important for Geralt's character.
The Witcher Season 2 debuts on Netflix on December 17. Feel free to check out the "ending explained" video below.