Netflix’s ‘Castlevania’ Season 4 confirmed, creator says production unaffected by coronavirus pandemic
After the rousing success of 'Castlevania' Season 3, Netflix announced that they have decided to renew the adult animation series for another season. Series creator Warren Ellis has now confirmed the news on his Instagram page on April 22, revealing that Season 3 actually outperformed the previous seasons.
Based on the video game franchise by Konami, the show follows Trevor Belmont (Richard Armitage), Adrian Alucard Tepes (James Callis), and Sypha Belnades (Alejandra Reynoso) on their adventures across Wallachia. The first two seasons of the show covered the war between humanity and the vampires, led by Alucard's father Vlad Dracula Tepes (Graham McTavish), while Season 3 dealt with the aftermath of the war.
"So, we had our Netflix call about the 28-day data on 'Castlevania' Season 3 last week," Ellis wrote on his Instagram. "And, because Netflix data is protected, I can’t actually tell you all the exact numbers. What I can say is that season 3’s popularity was an order of magnitude over that of season 2, and season 2 was popular enough to get us season 3.
"It turns out season 3 did, really, shockingly well. Shows tend to show a little attrition in the third season, and it was, quote, 'unusual' to see the audience actually rise by a multiple factor."
"Season 3 was in the Netflix Top 10 — not for animation, not for TV, but for all Netflix content — for a week or two in 40 countries," he continued. "That was huge. Thanks to everyone in the world who posted screenshots of their local Top 10 banner, by the way — all of you joining in to share that made it pretty easy to calculate, and it was wondrous to see them all rolling in. And I have to thank our partners at NX, and Brittany and Jeff at DKC, for helping us to get there."
Ellis also mentioned that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is unlikely to affect the show's production writing, "So we’re on for season 4. We don’t expect too much of a covid-related delay, but if that one guy who keeps tagging me on IG to demand 'Season 4 NOW' could f*** off, I’d appreciate it."
The legendary comic book creator and writer also mused about what the show's success might mean for the future of adult animation.
"Four seasons of an Anglophone adult drama animation about vampires, moral philosophy and toilet paper," Ellis mused. "Which is not a niche production, but something with an audience of (stops, sees Netflix sniper rifle dot)… many, many millions. Who saw that coming?"
"If it turns out that this weird thing is what prised open the door on doing adult-oriented drama narrative in English language animation, I would be delighted," he added. "Because we just proved that the audience is there, in the same numbers that show up for live-action drama."
Ellis finished off the message writing, "In conclusion: thanks very much, everybody."
Are you excited about 'Castlevania' returning for another season of vampires and magic? What would you most like to see happen in the coming season? Let us know in the comments.
'Castlevania' Season 4 doesn't have an official release date yet but Seasons 1 to 3 are all currently available for streaming on Netflix.
