Speaking with Spideraxe, however, Linke revealed that, alongside the previously-announced regions, an Arcane follow-up set in Bilgewater is also being worked on. The showrunner described how many predictions he’d seen on different Reddit threads reflected their larger plans, with years of work having been put into their current plans. While listing off regions they’re planning to explore, he mentioned the pirate-themed locale as another core focus. Check out what Linke had to say below:
The next stories, I mean I’m literally flying to Paris early next year to continue the work with Fortiche in-depth and we’re working on the next stories, we’re exploring a bunch of them. When I saw these, there were like these two or three Reddit threads where people were like, “What next story should they focus on?” What’s nice is that, like, all the top comments of which one we should focus on, we’re already and have been focusing on them for months. in some cases years. I’m very confident that we’re looking in the right direction, and looking at the right stories and the right characters…. We’re investing heavily into Noxus, into Ionia. Demacia. Bilgewater.
Last clip of the day, Riot Praeco shared what he is looking forward to next, which is of course the next stories. In addition to Noxus, Ionia, and Demacia, they’re also investing heavily into Bilgewater. pic.twitter.com/NWawFWoUqX — Spideraxe (@Spideraxe30) November 30, 2024
What Linke’s Bilgewater Confirmation Means For Future League Of Legends Projects
The Pirate-Themed Region Will Be Extremely Important
Sequestered within the Serpent Isles, Bilgewater is an unregulated, ungoverned region of Runeterra, inspired by pirates and containing plenty of crime and opportunity for its characters. Some notable champions who inhabit the region include Mss Fortune, Gangplank, Graves, Nautilus, and Pyke. All of these characters and more now have a chance to show up in future League of Legends TV shows and other projects. While it’s still unclear how Arcane‘s follow-up shows will intersect their regional stories together, the pirate nation’s affinity for crime could be what brings everything together.
Linke’s confirmation of Bilgewater also highlights just how many regions are now on the table, including some that may not have been announced yet. What’s notable is that executive producer Marc Merrill confirmed each region doesn’t necessarily correspond with one series, meaning the pirate-themed locale could appear alongside one or two other places. Their involvement could also pull inspiration from Ruined King, a 2021 turn-based spinoff game set in the pirate city. With plenty of unknowns so far, there’s a variety of methods that can be used to pull it into the TV universe.
Our Take On Bilgewater As An Arcane Follow-Up
A Very Different Region With Plenty To Explore
Bilgewater seems like a perfect way to continue expanding League of Legends‘ TV universe, offering new characters for viewers to grow connected to across Runeterra. Since Arcane had plenty of deaths and changes to champions throughout its run, some similar storytelling techniques are bound to appear in all the upcoming locations. With at least four regions now having plans in place for new stories, there’s no telling what will come next as the video game adaptation’s world grows.
Linke has previously suggested a movie set in the League of Legends universe is also in the works, while Merrill has teased game follow-ups to Arcane as well.
