One of Netflix’s biggest experiments with video game adaptations was Castlevania by Warren Ellis, which was based on the popular Konami video game, Castlevania. The series initially started with four episodes, then the second season got eight episodes, and finally, the third and fourth seasons were settled with ten episodes each.
With the growing popularity of the Castlevania series after every season, the creators became confident that they might be able to get the ending that they desired. However, the intriguing ending that they planned for the series was dependent on the success of the third season, which was left on a cliffhanger by the creators.
This was revealed by Kevin Kolde, the executive producer and co-showrunner of Castlevania. While all of this worked out great in the end, there was a big chance that his reliance on the success of Castlevania’s season 3 could have drastically backfired, and fans would have never gotten the fourth season.
Kevin Kolde Planned Castlevania’s Season 4 Along With Season 3
In an interview with Slashfilm in 2021, Kolde was asked about the final season of the series and how long ago it was planned. The co-showrunner pointed out that when they got approval for the third season from Netflix, they decided they would take two seasons to wrap up the story, despite the fact that they finally got two additional episodes.
Kolde stated:
It was basically the plan from the beginning. When we started season three, the idea was to wrap the story in season four. We knew before we started season three that we had a plan if we were lucky enough to be given a season four.
They planned the two seasons in such a way that the story would feel incomplete without one more season, and they hoped to be lucky enough to be given one additional season after the third season, which was already an experiment from the side of Netflix and the creators of the animated series. It all depended on the reception of the third season.
The Success of Castlevania’s Season 3 Greenlit The Already Planned Season 4
While the fourth season of the series was already planned and written accordingly, Kolde pointed out that the renewal of the fourth season heavily depended on the success of the third season. Also, they were nervous about the third season and were not entirely sure whether the third season would work out great or not because of the cliffhangers.
Kolde revealed:
We already knew how things would play out in the fourth season. Obviously we were nervous when season three came out and we didn’t know if we were going to get to do the fourth season. We always built it to end the way it did.
However, ultimately, it all worked out great, and Castlevania not only got a fourth season but also a spin-off series called Castlevania: Nocturne, which is also widely appreciated by fans.
And now Castlevania fans are waiting for the second season of Castlevania: Nocturne, which was already announced in October last year, but the release date is yet to be revealed.
You can watch Castlevania on Netflix.