Recently, it was announced that The Witcher will replace Henry Cavill with Liam Hemsworth as Geralt of Rivia. After two released seasons and one on the way, the series already had a well-established fanbase, who is understandably shocked at this news.Since this announcement reached the internet, users have plagued social media with jokes about Hemsworth's casting and Cavill's sudden departure from the show. Most of them, revolve around Hemsworth's ability to do well in the role, as well as Cavill's lack of loyalty to Netflix. However, hopefully, the fourth season of The Witcher will positively surprise the fans.
Fans Are Widely Complaining About This Decision
Both The Witcher franchise fans and casual viewers agreed that Henry Cavill was the perfect actor for the role of Geralt of Rivia. His physical complexion and broody demeanor were incredible. Besides, the fact that he loves the saga always guaranteed them a good performance.
Since it was announced that Cavill would step out of the role, the fandom has incessantly complained about the change in every platform possible. The PR Netflix team must be having a very difficult working day with this news.
Fans Are Having A Hard Time Processing The Change Of Image
In 1995 Coca-Cola made one of the most radical changes in the brand's history. Not only it changed the classic soda image, but it also modified the recipe for the beverage. This soon proved a mistake. It's been 30 years since that, but eighties kids still remember.
Just like it happened that time, fans are having a hard time accepting these changes. It's not just that Cavill was considered the perfect actor for the role, but after two seasons, the fandom already fell in love with his portrayal. Liam Hemsworth has big shoes to fill.
People Would Prefer Waiting Longer To Keep Cavill
The news that Henry Cavill will be stepping down from his role in The Witcher came just a couple of weeks after the actor announced he return as Superman in the DCEU. Given this the importance of this role for Warner, fans assume Cavill simply won't have the time to work on both projects.
Regardless, if this is the case, fans don't think this is enough justification. Netflix has had its viewers wait longer than a year for new seasons. For example, the Stranger Things fourth season took three years in the making and the series didn't lose the fans' loyalty. The fandom is failing to consider that Cavill's time as the Man of Steel will probably not end soon, so The Witcher's next season could take decades if Netflix waits for this actor.
Some Consider Hemsworth A Downgrade For The Show
The Witcher is right now one of the best fantasy series on Netflix. However, very few series tolerate a big change of cast, mostly because viewers get attached to the actors playing the role. In this case, it's even worse since Henry Cavill was the protagonist of the series, and fans were already in love with the way he played this character.
It's only been a couple of days since this announcement, but fans are already convinced Chris Hemsworth won't live up to the expectations. This defensive attitude may recede once they see Hemsworth characterization, but only time will tell.
Fans Believe Chris Hemsworth Would Have Been A Better Option
It's hard enough that the show is recasting its main character, but on top of that, the fandom believes Liam Hemsworth isn't even the best option out there. In fact, some fans believe his own brother, Chris Hemsworth, would definitely do a better job as Geralt.
This makes sense to a point. Chris is already universally known for playing Thor, another Viking epic hero, in the MCU. Fans already know he can rock the armor and the long hair. Additionally, it's impossible to ignore that Chris has a more bulky physical complexion than Liam, which feels like a relevant trait for a live-action Geralt.
Even People Who Didn't Like Cavill Are Disappointed With This Choice
A very unpopular opinion about The Witcher is that Henry Cavill wasn't the right option to play Geralt of Rivia. Some fans think Cavill's acting is stiff, which ruins the subtlety with which Geralt approaches life. Besides, his Geralt voice is too much of a Batman cliché.
Ironically, even the viewers rallying to get a better actor are unhappy about Liam Hemsworth's casting. Hemsworth's demeanor may be too soft to play such a complex antihero as Geralt de Rivia. However, the audience will need to wait for actual proof to see how good or bad Hemsworth is in this role.
Fans Think This Is The End Of The Witcher Series
The Witcher is one of Netflix's more popular original shows. However, fans of the series are convinced this is about to come to an end. They believe Henry Cavill brought a unique energy to the series that, unfortunately, Liam Hemsworth won't be able to replace.
It's probably because Cavill is a fan of the franchise, but he always managed to portray him as accurately as possible. Regardless, The Witcher is more than just Cavill's performance. Freya Allan and Anya Chalotra also brought a strong presence to the show. Thinking The Witcher's success disrespects the rest of the cast and crew's work.
All Types Of Fans Think This Is A Huge Mistake
The Witcher franchise started out as a series of fantasy books and then became an outstanding videogame series. Later on, Netflix turned it into a TV show adaptation. Some people are fans of the books, others of the game, others of the show, and some love all the materials.
However, regardless of how people came to love this franchise, all fans are disappointed with this choice of casting. It makes sense, they love the sage and this adaptation to be as good as possible. Still, the first thing to do is wait for Hemsworth's performance before emitting such strong judgment.
Cavill Wasn't As Committed As He Had Said
Since Cavill always said he really liked The Witcher, fans didn't expect him to jump ship before the end of the series. In fact, he had already stated in an interview that he was absolutely committed to the show (via IGN). However, this is just how Hollywood works.
Considering the DCEU current restructuring, they obviously wanted Cavill to return for the Superman role. Likely, they offered him an economical opportunity he couldn't refuse. After all, Superman is the pillar of the DC universe, and fans already love Cavill as the Kryptonian.
Fans Speculate Cavill Left The Show Because He Didn't Like The Approach Writers Were Taking
One of the leading theories about Cavill's departure from The Witcher points to DC poaching him to play the Man of Steel, but the other one has more emotional implications. As a long-standing fan of The Witcher, Cavill himself said he would play the role as long as Netflix respected the original material.
Fans of the books think the show was already going downhill regarding the adaptation. For instance, the series doesn't follow each character's individual story, which is a great deal in the books. Viewers can only imagine how bad the next season will be, if it likely scared Cavill off.