It’s rather ironic that we’re talking about ratings at a time like now. We say that because the Writer’s Guild and the Screen Actors Guild are on strike, and thus pretty much all of Hollywood is at a standstill until deals are worked out. Yet, because of timing, some shows and movies will air and release soon, including being put out on streaming services. For example, The Witcher Season 3 Part 1 dropped just before the strike, and Part 2 will be out soon. However, if you think that the series has been doing as well as before, you’d be wrong.
As noted by IGN, Part 1 of the third season has seen a significant drop in views as it’s down 30% compared to Season 2. Some would be quick to point out that this is a “natural thing” over the course of time, but when you consider how much this franchise has meant to Netflix, you wouldn’t suspect that big of a drop.
So what is the deal? There are many ways to look at it. The initial one, which IGN pointed out in their tweet, is that many people might be waiting for the second part to come out so they can binge it. The first two seasons weren’t split apart like this one, which worked to their advantage numbers-wise. Netflix has been flirting with this via other series, with it happening with Stranger Things Season 4. The difference is that fans had been waiting for that season for years and were almost begging for it to release. In contrast, while The Witcher Season 3 was anticipated, it wasn’t as though we didn’t know when it would eventually arrive. Netflix was very open about it as of last year.
The other issue is that of Henry Cavill, many fans are sad/mad that he’s leaving the role of Geralt of Rivia, and many will likely not watch the third season because it will be the last with him. Not to mention, the replacement announcement of Liam Hemsworth taking over the role hasn’t gone over well with the fanbase.
That’s not to say that he won’t do well, but we won’t know until Season 4 happens, which will take longer to film due to the strikes going on.
We won’t know the full numbers until Part 2 comes out in a few weeks. But if this trend holds, it might not be the numbers that Netflix desires.
