Netflix is about to air the third season of The Witcher, which for many fans, may be considered the last, given that it’s Henry Cavill’s final season as Geralt of Rivia.
Cavill is being replaced by Liam Hemsworth for the already-renewed seasons 4 and 5 of the show, which should complete the main source material of the books. Fans have been mourning this development ever since it was announced, given that for two seasons Cavill has felt like the perfect Geralt.
But, in a new interview with RadioTimes, executive producer Steven Gaub has a comparison to make about Cavill being replaced by Hemsworth:
“I think, holistically, Henry gave us an incredible three seasons of Geralt but there’s been so many franchises that have had really strong title characters and eventually, for whatever reason, personal decision or, or just the length of time frame, the title character changes actors.”
“We love everything that Henry gave us as a Geralt and now we’re really excited about what Liam can give us as a Geralt, much like there’s been different James Bonds, different Doctor Whos, different Spider-Mans.”
Okay just…this is not the same thing at all. Overlooking the rumors that Henry Cavill was unsatisfied with the direction of the series and its lack of adherence to the source material, the comparisons just don’t make sense.
James Bond is a series that spans dozens of years, and we often have the same bond for decades (Daniel Craig has been our James Bond since 2006, believe it or not). Doctor Who has a literal story reason for why the Doctor changes appearance via regeneration. We have different Spider-Men because Sony wants to keep making money off one of their most valuable IPs, and they had to have a new one when they moved to the MCU specifically.
But in all three of these, they share a common thread, almost always, when you get a new James Bond, Doctor Who or Peter Parker, the entire rest of the cast changes. With rare exceptions, we get new Bond girls, new Ms and Qs, new Doctor companions, new MJs and Gwen Stacys. This is not what’s happening in The Witcher, as the rest of the cast, Yenn, Ciri, Jaskier, Vesemir are all remaining the same. It’s also still the same book arc, since Cavill is leaving in the middle.
The only comparison I can think would be appropriate is if ten years from now, they decided to adapt The Witcher games instead with a new Geralt actor and new…all of the other actors. That would be more like a James Bond/Peter Parker thing. But Occam’s Razor says that Cavill was upset or busy or both and left, and they had to replace him. The end.
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