The Rats Witcher spinoff described as a behind the scenes disaster

Netflix's planned Witcher spinoff The Rats has been described by industry sources as a behind-the-scenes disaster and may never be released in its intended form, according to reports. The prequel, which filmed in early 2023 and was to follow a band of teenage thieves who intersect with Ciri, was reportedly cut short after roughly two months of production and judged by some executives to be unreleasable.

Reporting by Redanian Intelligence and other outlets cites unnamed people involved with the production as calling The Rats worse than Blood Origin, a previous Witcher prequel that drew heavy criticism. Those sources said filming had been scheduled to run about six months but ended prematurely after the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike complicated on-set oversight. Showrunners Haily Hall and The Witcher lead showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich were reportedly present during production but—because of strike rules—were unable to actively work on the project, the reports said.

Accounts differ on what will happen to the footage. Some reports say Netflix has already repackaged the material into a single feature, provisionally titled The Rats: A Witcher's Tale. Other reports suggest...