Grishaverse fans are hoping to summon Shadow and Bone season 3 on Netflix. The fantasy epic recently released its second installment, which has been burning up the streamer's Top 10 chart. While a third season hasn't been ordered, the show's creative team already has plans for more adventures involving Alina, Mal and the Crows.
Shadow and Bone, based on Leigh Bardugo's popular books, is set in a world where people practice magic (called "the small science"). Called the Grisha, they can manipulate elements, such as metal, bodies and air.
Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Lin) is an extremely rare Sun Summoner, who has the power to eradicate the Shadow Fold, a dangerous darkness that divides the nation of Ravka. Opposing her is the Shadow Summoner, aka the Darkling, aka General Kirigan (Ben Barnes).
Shadow and Bone season 2 sends Alina to distant locations to find new allies and new weapons to defeat the Darkling and destroy the Shadow Fold. By the end, the series diverges significantly from the books. The third installment, should it move forward, will likely mix storylines from the books with completely original material.
Here's what we know so far about Shadow and Bone season 3.
Is Shadow and Bone season 3 confirmed?
Shadow and Bone season 3 hasn't been renewed by Netflix.
Considering the show's popularity (it's also been the No. 1 TV show on Netflix in the U.S. in the first four days according to FlixPatrol), a renewal seems more than possible.
Shadow and Bone season 3 release date speculation
If Shadow and Bone season 3 does get the green light, it may not arrive for some time.
Nearly two years elapsed between the releases of seasons 1 and 2. Some of that may have to do with pandemic-related delays. But another reason may be the significant visual effects required in post-production.
A similar amount of time will likely pass before Shadow and Bone season 3 premieres. Our best guess is spring 2025.
Shadow and Bone season 3 cast
It's hard to imagine Shadow and Bone season 3 happening without Jessie Mei Li as Alina Starkov. The former orphan cartographer is now acknowledged far and wide as the Sun Summoner and leader of Ravka's Grisha army.
Her counterpart for the first two seasons, Ben Barnes as General Kirigan, may not return. Kirigan is killed in the season 2 finale and his body is burned. However, he may return in visions or dreams experienced by Alina or other characters.
Thankfully we're creating brand-new material for actors that we know and love and trust who will carry the water for us on this.
Eric Heisserer
Many of the other main players are expected to be back. Among them is Archie Renaux as Malyen "Mal" Oretsov, a tracker and Alina's childhood best friend who has taken on the mantle of privateer Sturmhond.
Other Shadow and Bone season 3 cast members should include:
- Patrick Gibson as Nikolai Lantsov, newly crowned king of Ravka
- Freddy Carter as Kaz Brekker, the leader of the Crows
- Amita Suman as Inej Ghafa, a member of the Crows known as the Wraith
- Kit Young as Jesper Fahey, a member of the Crows and sharpshooter
- Jack Wolfe as Wylan Hendriks, a demolitions expert a new member of the Crows
- Danielle Galligan as Nina Zenik, a Heartrender and Crow who is in love with Matthias
- Calahan Skogman as Matthias, a Fjerdan Drüskelle in prison
- Daisy Head as Genya Safin, a rare Grisha Tailor
- Sujaya Dasgupta as Zoya, a Squaller who trains new Grisha
- Lewis Tan as Tolya Yul-Bataar, a Shu Han Heartrender and Tamar's twin
- Anna Leong Brophy as Tamar Kir-Bataar, a Shu Han Heartrender and Tolya's twin
- Dean Lennox Kelly as Pekka Rollins, a Ketterdam crime boss now in prison
Shadow and Bone season 3 plot
Shadow and Bone season 3's plot may weave together storylines from multiple books by Bardugo. Season 2 not only did so, but also made major changes.
The biggest change is that Alina doesn't lose her powers while defeating Kirigan, so she and Mal don't retire to the country for a quiet life. Instead, the lovers part ways for a time. Alina stays in Ravka to stand beside the newly-crowned King Nikolai, while Mal takes on the mantle of the privateer Sturmhond to sail the open seas.
This choice seems to have been made to keep two principal cast members (Lin and Renaux) around.
“Thankfully we're creating brand-new material for actors that we know and love and trust who will carry the water for us on this,” co-showrunner Eric Heisserer told Entertainment Weekly. “And it's weaving their story in with the King of Scars duology that we're already in love with, and what we think is going to come alive on screen from those. So it's a matter of stitching those in the way we've stitched in other characters in these first two seasons.”
The finale ended by setting up a potential Shadow and Bone season 3. During Nikolai's coronation, a Fjerdan attacks everyone present. She has apparently been using the highly addictive drug jurda parem.
Mal, is sailing aboard the Hummingbird. Despite their avowals of love, he and Alina have decided to separate and see if they can find their way back to each other.
Elsewhere, in Ketterdam, Kaz explains that jurda parem amplifies Grisha's powers by a thousand times. He and the Crows have been hired to rescue the scientist who developed the drug, who is now on trial in Fjerda, in the hopes of preventing an all-out war between nations.
The jurda parem storyline comes directly from Six of Crows, the first book in a duology.
Meanwhile, the finale also revealed that Nikolai has seemingly retained some of Kirigan's shadow monster. This storyline comes from King of Scars, also the first book of a duology. Zoya Nazyalensky is a key figure involved, which makes it more meaningful that Alina tapped her to train the Grisha.
As for Alina herself, her future is unclear, since it differs from the books. She kills the coronation assailant with the Cut, a method used by Kirigan. It seems the Darkling's sway is holding, even after "death."
Meanwhile, Mal, is sailing aboard the Hummingbird. Despite their avowals of love, he and Alina have decided to separate and see if they can find their way back to each other. With Inej on board, they look to target slaver ships.
