Not too long ago, Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski
documented the regrettable deal he made with
CD Projekt RED for rights to make a video game adaptation of his
Witcher fantasy saga. Just an upstart studio at the time, Sapkowski had no idea that
RED would go on to achieve great success and instead, opted for an upfront, lump sum payment.
Whatever Sapkowski's fee was, it surely isn't anywhere close to what he could've earned had he opted to take a share of the profits.
With the recent news that
Netflix is making a live-action adaptation of The Witcher series, many gamers assumed
CD Projekt Red would be involved in some capacity but it seems they too made a mistake in negotiations. Rather than grab all media/licensing rights to The Witcher, it seems they only control what happens in the video game industry. As such, they have no involvement in the upcoming Netflix drama and the deal was strictly between the streaming platform and Sapkowski.
A representative of
CD Projekt RED confirmed the news to IGN.