The Witcher: Fans pissed at Henry Cavill’s exit, so they demand his return

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Liam Hemsworth replaces Henry Cavill as Geralt of Riva in season 4 of The Witcher. The enthusiasm of many fans is limited in this regard.

The Witcher is going into renewal – but without Henry Cavill in Geralt’s armour. Only recently Netflix announced that we will get to see a new Witcher from season 4: Liam Hemsworth fills the (big) shoes Cavill leaves behind.

No concrete reasons for Henry Cavill’s exit are known at the moment – but some viewers think they do. At least one thing is certain: Many fans are anything but thrilled about the development: among other things, there are threats of boycotts, while tens of thousands are calling for Henry Cavill’s return via petition.

So while the witch’s cottage is on fire at Netflix, things look a lot rosier at CD Projekt Red: Not only were five new Witcher games announced recently, but also a remake of the very first role-playing game.

Netflix’s new Geralt for season 4

What Happened Last: It was announced on October 30, 2022 that we will be seeing a new Geralt in season 4 of The Witcher. Henry Cavill is getting out, Liam Hemsworth is getting in. Cavill will still be seen in the role of the Witcher in the third season, after which the change is due.

Fans have already visualised what Liam Hemsworth could look like as Geralt. And yes, already here it shimmers through how little one thinks of the decision and the new casting for The Witcher:

What’s behind Henry Cavill’s departure?

Superhero instead of Sorcerer? Many fans speculate that Henry Cavill’s return as Superman for DC and Warner Bros. was the main reason for the decision. Only recently, after several years of uncertainty, it was announced that the actor from films such as Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and Justice League will be allowed to save the world on the big screen again after all.

However, another theory is also spreading in the community: There are supposed to have been good old creative differences between Henry Cavill and the people responsible for The Witcher on Netflix. Cavill has repeatedly argued that the TV series should be as faithful as possible to the novels by author Andrzej Sapkowski.

A specific example: For Season 2 of The Witcher, Henry Cavill wanted Geralt to have more to say and not limit his communication to swearing and grunting (via GamesRadar). After all, Geralt is considered intellectual and eloquent in the books. In keeping with this, there are, for example, the following compilations.

In light of this, fans suspect Cavill has had to constantly wrestle with those behind the Netflix series. Because as former producer Beau DeMayo (via TheDirect) has since revealed, some of The Witcher’s writers were so out of touch with the novels as well as the games, and even actively made fun of them.

In retrospect, fans believe that Henry Cavill’s exit from The Witcher was a long time coming. However, it is impossible to say with certainty what exactly went on behind the scenes of The Witcher and ultimately led to the Geralt change.

Henry Cavill’s plan for seven seasons of The Witcher: By the way, Cavill had originally even communicated that The Witcher would comprise at least seven seasons and that he himself would be an integral part of it. As things stand, however, this will no longer happen.

This is how fans react

The decision to replace Henry Cavill with Liam Hemsworth has been met with a lot of criticism from the community. Numerous viewers declare that The Witcher is over for them with season 3 and that they are no longer interested in the series if Cavill no longer plays Geralt. Others go a little further and declare that they will boycott the Netflix series completely for this reason.

In the same breath a petition is gaining momentum with a clear goal: Henry Cavill must be kept The Witcher, instead the writers of the Netflix series should be fired.  The petition was started shortly after Cavill’s exit was announced and has already collected over 40,000 signatures.

What do you think about Henry Cavill’s exit from The Witcher: Does the series lose its appeal for you or can you get over Geralt’s change of actor? Let us know in the comments!