It’s been a seesawing week for pop culture news, starting with some heartbreaking news that could derail Netflix’s The Witcher franchise, and ending with a long-wished-for announcement about one of the streamer’s big 2022 hits. Below are all the stories that stood out for us this week.

As for notable deaths in the entertainment industry, this week saw the passing at age 87 of “Great Balls of Fire” singer and songwriter Jerry Lee Lewis, an Elvis contemporary and one of the first bad boys of rock n roll – who also is notable for marrying his 13 year old cousin. Dennis Quaid played Lewis in a 1989 biopic.

Television

A collective sigh of relief rippled around the globe yesterday, as it was finally confirmed that The Sandman has been renewed for a second season on Netflix. The creator-led adaptation of the DC Comics series drew in massive viewership, remaining first on the global rankings for multiple weeks, yet Netflix kept mum about a follow-up season, likely because the show is clearly incredibly expensive. After an accidental leak on Wednesday via the official DC Comics Twitter page, Neil Gaiman himself confirmed that the dream continues.

From dreams come true to a potential nightmare scenario, the news broke this past weekend that Henry Cavill is leaving The Witcher, with the upcoming Season 3 confirmed as the actor’s last. Rumours are swirling as to why, from the high demand on Cavill with his return as Superman, to the more dramatic “creative differences” between Cavill and the writers/showrunners. Regardless of the reason, it’s a huge blow for fans of the show, as Cavill was the main drawcard and, to be perfectly frank, often carried the series. Can the younger Hemsworth fill those tight leather Witcher pants? We’ll have to wait until Season 4 to find out.

Back on the good news, principal photography has started on Season 2 of Severance, with some fantastic cast additions in as-yet-unknown roles. Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones, The Sandman), Bob Balaban (The Chair), Merritt Wever (Godless), Alia Shawkat (Search Party), Robby Benson (Beauty and the Beast), Stefano Carannante (Mirabilia), Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (The Tourist) and John Noble (Fringe) join the ranks, alongside existing cast members Patricia Arquette, John Turturro, Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, Dichen Lachman, Jen Tullock, Tramell Tillman, Michael Chernus and Christopher Walken – all confirmed to return. There’s absolutely nothing else in terms of plot or release date, only a single, first look image – courtesy of Deadline.

On the heels of the recent news that Doctor Who has a new home at Disney+ for viewers outside of the UK, The Telegraph has reported that it’s not just a distribution deal. Disney is now poised to give the show blockbuster backing, with a potential makeover and allegedly, some creative involvement.

As reported, showrunner Russell T Davies (who helmed the first few seasons of 2003’s revival) will retain the overall creative vision for the programme, but the corporate might of Disney will give the show vast budgets beyond the BBC’s means, allowing for more cinematic production values and more stars. I assume by more stars, they mean more Americans, because you can’t call yourself a British actor unless you’ve been in an episode of Doctor Who.

Now for some TV news tidbits:

  • Work is moving ahead on two WandaVision spinoffs. We knew about Agatha: Coven of Chaos, centred on WandaVision’s witchy villain Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn), but also in the very-early works is Vision Quest, which will reportedly continue the story of revived android Vision (played by Paul Bettany). Both Disney+ series will be overseen by WandaVision creator, writer and executive producer Jac Schaeffer. P.S. Aubrey Plaza, Heartstopper’s Joe Locke, Ali Ahn and Maria Dizzia are all joining the cast of the currently very secretive Coven of Chaos, which will likely debut in late 2023/early 2024.
  • Still on matters of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (who played Morpheus in The Matrix Resurrections, and Manta in Aquaman) will be lesser known villain-turned-hero Wonder Man in an upcoming Disney+ series. It’s also rumoured that Bob Odenkirk will have a key role.
  • A Friday the 13th prequel series is coming to Peacock. With the studio backing of A24, Crystal Lake will be overseen by Hannibal, Star Trek: Discovery and Pushing Daisies’ mastermind Bryan Fuller.
  • John Wick prequel series The Continental will be coming to Amazon’s Prime Video internationally, and Peacock in the US. Learn more about the 70s-set action thriller, which centres on the hotel where the world’s most dangerous assassins meet and seek refuge.
  • Oh, and HBO’s The Last of Us, an adaptation of PlayStation and Naughty Dog’s grim post-apocalyptic game, finally has a confirmed release date: 15 January 2023.

Film

Just over a month to go! The sequel to the highest earning movie of all time (2009’s Avatar), Avatar: The Way of Water releases on 16 December, and no doubt to stoke hype, the official trailer dropped this week. It provides a better look (than the teaser anyway) at James Cameron’s next fantasy sci-fi epic.

Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, Avatar: The Way of Water tells the story of Jake Sully and Neytiri’s family, and the lengths they go to keep each other safe as trouble and tragedy stalks them on the planet of Pandora. The mostly mo-capped cast includes returning Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang, with Kate Winslet a notable new addition.

Out of interest, Avatar: The Way of Water is clocking in at 190 minutes (that’s 3 hours and 10 minutes) of runtime.

It’s not just Japan that faces the threat of legendary hulking monsters. Northern Europe is at risk too… from surly trolls apparently. That’s according to upcoming movie Troll. When an explosion in the Norwegian mountains awakens an ancient troll, officials appoint a fearless palaeontologist to stop it from wreaking deadly havoc. This fantasy-action film stars Ine Marie Wilmann and is directed by The Wave and Tomb Raider’s Roar Uthaug. Troll arrives on Netflix on 1 December.

An arty A24 ghost story with Tilda Swinton in dual roles? Sign us up. From The Souvenir filmmaker Joanna Hogg, and with Martin Scorsese as Executive Producer, The Eternal Daughter is about a middle-aged artist (Swinton) and her elderly mother (also Swinton), who must confront long-buried secrets when they return to their former family home, which is now a moody hotel. The Eternal Daughter arrives in cinemas from 2 December.

Gaming

The biggest story out of the gaming world this week? PlayStation VR2 launches February 22, 2023, with pre-orders starting November 15. All the info is on the PlayStation blog, but you may want to temper your excitement.

This next iteration of PlayStation’s virtual reality set-up will cost $599.99 / £529.99 / AU$879.95. So in South Africa, people should expect to pay somewhere in the R14,000-R15,000 bracket. Another simpler way to look at it, is that VR2 will cost more than the PS5 console itself. The PS5 is priced at $499.99 in the USA, £449.99 in the UK, and $749.99 in Australia, while a recent price bump has taken the recommended retail price of the standard edition in South Africa to R12,499.

Out of interest, PS VR2 will launch with five titles (Horizon Call of the Mountain, Resident Evil Village, No Man’s Sky, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, and Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge — Enhanced Edition). A further 11 games are in the pipeline.

Below is the PlayStation VR2 Horizon Call of the Mountain bundle.