Netflix has canceled more than a few series in its time. On the other hand, it’s also made an effort to save other projects from being canceled. Interestingly, Netflix is now taking one of its own canceled series to bring it back in an unexpected way.
For starters, this newly-saved Netflix project is actually available to stream as of this writing. Part of the surprise is that Netflix dropped this canceled – and reformatted – series on their platform with little-to-no fanfare.
Now that the canceled series has been brought back, however, Netflix subscribers are able to finally see how it’s been saved. Interestingly, it’s no longer released in a series format but rather as a special. The new special, a spin-off for a much more successful Netflix series, suffered a complicated production that nearly led to a complete cancellation.
Fortunately, some aspects were saved, and the spin-off series based on The Witcher was finished as the aforementioned special instead. The newly-forged project, titled The Rats: A Witcher Tale, began life a few years ago as a potential Netflix series that would revolve around the titular Nilfgaardian characters.
With plans for six to eight episodes, however, production was scrapped before they had the opportunity to continue the series. It seemed likely that it wouldn’t happen at all. The contrary happened, however, as Netflix abruptly dropped the series as a 1-hour and 22 minute special titled The Rats: A Witcher Tale on October 30. Interestingly, this release date coincides with the release of The Witcher Season 4.
Now fans have quite a bit of material to enjoy with the long-awaited release of The Witcher Season 4. It also gives fans that expected the series to be scrapped entirely a glimpse at what could have been. While Netflix wasn’t proud of the way The Rats: A Witcher Tale was coming together during production, many fans are already enjoying the release of the special.
Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional Netflix updates as we have them, including those regarding The Witcher and its spin-offs. Though The Rats: A Witcher Tale didn’t come together as planned, it’s possible that it’s only the beginning for Netflix’s attempts to further expand the franchise.