Cursed Looks to Be the Next Witcher for Netflix

The nearly decade-long reign of Game of Thrones made it clear to television studios across the industry that TV fans dig fantasy, plain and simple. While movies in the realm of the fantasy genre have mostly struggled since The Lord of the Rings, it seems like TV executives have been hesitant to explore the genre. Game of Thrones changed their minds, as there are now more fantasy shows in development than ever before. At least it seems that way. There was some question as to whether fantasy could hold up in a post-Game of Thrones world, but Netflix quickly disproved that with The Witcher, which was the streamer's most popular show of last year. Now, the world's streaming leader is preparing to release Cursed out into the world, and its looking like the successor to The Witcher that fans have been waiting for.

Thursday morning brought the debut of the Cursed trailer, promising high fantasy action and plenty of Arthurian lore for fans to enjoy. It also made clear that Netflix is going all-in on the fantasy game. Cursed may not reach the heights of The Witcher's popularity, but it's going to be damn close.

The Witcher had a bigger built-in audience than Cursed does, thanks in large part to the popular video game series. It also had big screen superhero Henry Cavill leading the way. Cursed is based on a book by Thomas Wheeler and Frank Miller. That's not the most popular title in the world, but it has its fans, and the Arthurian characters will certainly draw more eyes in.

That said, Cursed has two things going for it that The Witcher didn't, which will seriously help close the gap. First and foremost, it's directed at a wider audience. The Witcher is for adults, where as teenagers and some kids can enjoy Cursed. Secondly, Cursed wields a secret weapon, and her name is Katherine Langford.

Yes, Langford was in films like Avengers: Endgame and Knives Out, but that's not what the vast majority of Netflix audiences will know her from. Langford was the face of 13 Reasons Why in its first season. Despite its controversies, 13 Reasons Why is a massive hit for Netflix. Just look at the rotating Top 10 list on the site over the past couple of weeks. Since the final season of 13 Reasons Why was released, it has consistently been one of Netflix's most popular titles. When a new show starring Katherine Langford appears on the service, plenty of people who normally wouldn't watch fantasy are going to hit play.

If you still doubt that Cursed can be as popular than The Witcher, if not more so, just look at what's going on right now. Movie theaters still aren't open. There's barely any new TV on cable and broadcast networks. Streaming is the only consistent form of entertainment. When Cursed arrives on July 17th, what else is going to compete with it for the public's attention?

The point is, Cursed is destined to be a hit for Netflix. That should be extra exciting for fantasy fans out there, because it looks like a repeat of The Witcher is coming next month. You're not going to want to miss out.

The first season of Cursed arrives on Netflix on Friday, July 17th.