The Witcher spin-off has reportedly been scrapped and will "most likely" be part of season 4

Previous reports indicated that The Witcher would flesh out its world on Netflix with a spin-off based on The Rats, the group of young ne’er-do-wells who encountered Ciri (Freya Allan) at the tail-end of The Witcher season 3.

Now, though, it seems The Rats have scurried off – with a new report suggesting that any filmed footage could be reworked into either a special or The Witcher season 4.

Redanian Intelligence – which boasts a solid track record on Witcher-centric scoops – says that an intended filming period for six-to-eight episodes was cut to "one or two." Supposedly, Netflix declined to pick up the full season after seeing early footage.

Instead, The Rats spin-off will "most likely" form part of The Witcher season 4 as flashbacks. The group were first introduced in The Witcher season 3 finale and saw Giselher (Ben Radcliffe), Mistle (Christelle Elwin), Iskra (Aggy K. Adams), Kayleigh (Fabian McCallum), Reef (Juliette Alexandra), and Asse (Connor Crawford) rescue Ciri after she was captured by mercenaries.

It has recently been announced that The Witcher will come to an end with its fifth season. That news was revealed alongside the first look at new Geralt actor Liam Hemsworth as a table read for The Witcher season 4.

Hemsworth, who replaces Henry Cavill as the White Wolf, apparently looks "awesome" in Geralt makeup according to longtime producer of The Witcher Tomek Baginski (via Express Online). He’s set to portray Geralt for the next two seasons on Netflix.

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