Netflix’s fantasy prequel series The Witcher: Blood Origin has just found its next star in Vikings and Game of Thrones actor Laurence O’Fuarain. This prequel to The Witcher was greenlit back in the summer of 2020. The new series is currently in pre-production and is expected to start filming sometime this year. O'Fuarain will be joining the only other previously announced cast member, Jodie Turner-Smith, in this highly anticipated fantasy prequel.

O'Fuarain is mostly known for his guest appearances in several well-known shows, but this is the first time he will headline a series. According to The Witcher Twitter's Friday announcement, O'Fuarain has been cast as Fjall, a warrior who ends up battling alongside Turner-Smith’s Eile. Fjall’s story apparently begins with him being part of a tight-knit group of soldiers who have dedicated their lives to protecting a particular king. While this life may work for some of the members of the clan, Fjall is broken due to his own guilt and hurt over the death of a loved one. Fjall will end up going on a journey of self-discovery that leads him to develop some very unlikely allies.

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Henry Cavill in The Witcher
Image via Netflix

The original The Witcher series premiered in December 2019 on Netflix and was a huge success for the streaming service. Prequel spinoff The Witcher: Blood Origins takes place 1200 years before the events of The Witcher and follows the events surrounding a magical event referred to as the "Conjunction of the Spheres," as well as the creation of the first-ever Witcher prototype. Declan De Barra will serve as showrunner on the series, which is set to have six episodes. It also wouldn’t be surprising if O'Fuarain's casting news becomes a catalyst for several more casting announcements for The Witcher: Blood Origins in the coming weeks.

Fans of The Witcher should be psyched for this series, which is being described as being cut from the same cloth. The Witcher itself is also returning for a second season, which is set to air at some point this year. There has been no release date announced for either The Witcher Season 2 or the prequel series, so it’s not obvious which will come first, even though it seems more likely that the former will. Either way, fans of The Witcher have a double dose of fantastical action coming their way at some point in the near future.

We'll keep you posted on The Witcher: Blood Origin as news emerges. In the meantime, check out the official announcement for O'Fuarain's casting below.

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