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The Witcher Season 2 Will Reportedly Feature An Elf Army
Filming for season 2 of The Witcher is underway, and new shoot details have emerged revealing the presence of the fearsome elven army, the Scoia'tael. Season 1 of Netflix's new juggernaut introduced fans to the complicated politics of the Continent with its scheming brotherhood of sorcerers, semi-competent aristocrats, and ambitious imperial neighbors to the south. All those factions provide varying degrees of challenge and annoyance for Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri, but one major political player, the elves, have been left off the table for all but a brief appearance during the show's second episode, "Four Marks."
In that episode, Geralt met the king of the oppressed elven people, Filavandrel, who showed off just how far the elves have been pushed by humanity. That image of the elves is less than formidable but in the Witcher books they possess a terrifying military presence in the form of the Scoia'tael. Literally translated to "squirrels" for the squirrel tails they have fastened to their caps, the Scoia'tael are a brutal commando unit that inspires fear in humans and demands loyalty from all non-humans. Their presence in the novels is one that significantly escalates tensions around the Continent.
A report from Redanian Intelligence notes that what appears to be the Scoia'tael are massing in the new shoot in Dorking, England alongside Yennefer, Filavandrel, and a new character from the books, the elven queen Francesca Findabair. Also known as Enid an Gleanna, which is Elder Speech for "Daisy of the Valleys," Francesca is an incredibly powerful sorceress and is known far and wide as the most beautiful woman in the world. Despite her presence in the scenes, no official casting has been announced for Francesca just yet.
The filming of the army's scenes reportedly took place over three days and featured dozens of extras. Those extras were clad in elven ears and a jumble of costumes and armor fitting of a ragtag cell of a guerrilla army. Those involved reported that the shooting days were long and grueling. However, there's no indication of just what the army is meeting with the elven royalty or Yennefer for.
In the books, Geralt has more than a few run-ins with the Scoia'tael, including one very early in the first novel, Blood of Elves. While he and Ciri make their way to the witchers' stronghold, Kaer Morhen, they are constantly wary of running into the guerrilla forces as tensions between humans and non-humans continue to escalate. It's possible that these scenes are connected to that early encounter, but the Scoia'tael's influence on the series is far-reaching, meaning there's no shortage of possibilities for the true context. Answers to these questions and more ongoing changes to the series will have to wait until The Witcher returns for season 2 in 2021.
