Shows Like 'The Witcher' to Help Satisfy the Need for Medieval Sorcery in Your TV Lineup

There will probably never be a legitimate replacement for Game of Thrones, but shows like The Witcher certainly make the burn of losing the HBO staple a little easier. When The Witcher premiered on Netflix, it filled a certain void left behind for fantasy fans whether they read the book series or not. And after they binged through Season 1, fans likely wondered about other shows like The Witcher.

It's a unique show on its own, in that it follows the course set by the book series and video game that came before it. But there are certainly other shows in the same genre that could do well in enticing the same viewers who were drawn to it in the first place.

Shows like The Witcher, but without the incomparable Henry Cavill, of course.  

Outlander premiered on Starz in 2014 and has remained one of the network’s biggest series as a whole. It’s based on a book series of the same name, much like The Witcher, although there is no accompanying video game to more fully immerse yourself in the fantasy. And while Outlander involves lots of time travel and romance, it is still similar enough to The Witcher in how it came about and could be approachable for fans of the Netflix series too.

Jumping on the bandwagon of the success of other superhero and comic book-based TV shows, The Umbrella Academy was a fast success on Netflix, not unlike The Witcher. The show is about a group of adopted superheroes who come together to figure out the mysterious death of their adoptive father. Unlike The Witcher, it doesn't take place in an era that looks like medieval times, but it does have the fantasy element.

The History Channel’s Vikings helped put the network on the map as a channel for shows about things other than historical reenactments and pawn shops. Although Vikings is ending, it has been on the network for several seasons and has shown viewers the gritty, but vaguely historical, side of real life vikings who once existed. There’s also plenty of drama and adult content, which is par for the course with shows like these.

Although The Shannara Chronicles was canceled after two seasons, it’s another show based on a book series, which lent some authenticity and a preexisting fanbase. Like the books, the series followed demons and elves and an ongoing fight of good versus evil. The Witcher also follows this continuous battle and, like The Shannara Chronicles, it is based on fantasy.

As one of Syfy’s most successful series overall, The Magicians is still going strong as a fantasy drama based on the novel of the same name. Because there was just one book, the story has been able to veer off course a bit, but since Season 5 premieres in January 2020, it’s safe to say the fanbase has been steadily devoted to The Magicians, much like it already is to The Witcher.

It should probably go without saying that anything related to Lord of the Rings is comparable to The Witcher, given similar fantasy-based settings and book series. And while the Lord of the Rings TV show on Amazon has yet to premiere, it will likely be enough like The Witcher to share some fans with the show when it finally premieres.

When you have so many TV shows that share the fantasy element, there is bound to be a little overlap in subject. But like all of these shows similar to The Witcher, the newest Netflix hit does its best to stand out on its own. Now all fans need is for Season 2 to drop like now.

The Witcher is now streaming on Netflix.