The world ofThe Witchercontinues to expand in videogames and TV, and in the former, a big announcement was made regardingThe Witcher 4and Ciri, which is also a good sign for the Netflix show’s future afterHenry Cavill’s departureand recast. The world ofThe Witchercomes from the book series of Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, and it became widely popular when it was adapted into video games.The Witchergot its first English language adaptation in 2019 thanks to Netflix, with Henry Cavill playing the title witcher, Geralt of Rivia.
The Witcherhad a strong start on Netflix and was a big hit with critics and general audiences, but season 2 gained a lot of controversy due to the changes it made to the source material. Season 3 fixed some of those mistakes and improved in some parts, butThe Witchercouldn’t fully recover. Season 4 is facing even bigger challenges as Cavill leftThe Witcher,Liam Hemsworth was cast as Geralt, and season 3 set up some dark storylines. However, the most recentThe Witcher 4reveal about Ciri can be a big lesson for the show now that Cavill is gone.
The Witcher 4’s Big Ciri Reveal Is A Great Sign For Netflix’s Adaptation
The Witcher 4 Is Going On The Right Path
While Netflix’sThe Witcherprepares for its two final seasons (as it has been confirmed to end with season 5), the videogames have continued their course. The firstWitchervideo game was released in 2007, which got positive reviews from critics.The Witcherwas followed byThe Witcher 2: Assassins of Kingsin 2011 andThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntin 2015, and they have two expansion packs and seven spin-off games. Of course,Geralt has been the main character in the videogames, but that’s about to change with the fourth entry in the main series.
The Witcher 4’s big change is that, instead of Geralt of Rivia, the main character is Ciri.
The Witcher 4is planned to be the first installment in a new trilogy ofThe Witchervideogames set after the events ofWild Hunt, and its big change is that, instead of Geralt of Rivia, the main character is Ciri.The trailer forThe Witcher 4was revealed at The Game Awards 2024, but its shift to Ciri isn’t entirely surprising as the videogame series had been building towards it, andit’s a great way for them to expand Ciri’s story and the world ofThe Witcher.
Of course, the videogames and the Netflix series are completely unrelated, though the latter has taken some elements and inspiration from the former, butThe Witcher 4’s shift from Geralt to Ciri can be the biggest lesson the show can learn and apply from the videogames, especially now that Cavill is gone and Hemsworth is taking over.
The Witcher 4’s Protagonist Shows How The Netflix Show Can Handle Henry Cavill’s Recast
Ciri Is The Key To The Witcher Without Henry Cavill
Geralt’s recast in Netflix’sThe Witcheris the biggest challenge the show has faced so far, and while Hemsworth can absolutely bring a great version of Geralt of Rivia, there’s still the risk of him not being well-received by the audience. A big advantage is that the Netflix show has shared the spotlight between Geralt, Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra), and Ciri (Freya Allan), so there’s no risk of the show relying too much on Geralt – however, with the recast, Netflix should take note fromThe Witcher 4.
Focusing more on Ciri in season 4 should be an easy move forThe Witcher, as season 3 pretty much set this up.The Witcherseason 3 endedwith a Fake Ciri being taken to the White Flame and introduced to the people of Nilfgaard as the real Princess Ciri. Meanwhile, the real Ciri is transported to the Korath desert and is later rescued by the Rats, who invite her to join them.Ciri introduces herself as “Falka”to the Rats, keeping her true identity a secret.
Through this, the show would also be taking some pressure off from Hemsworth and his version of Geralt.
All thissets up some of Ciri’s most important and darkest stories from the books, such as her time with the Rats and the White Flame’s true intentions, so shifting the focus to her in season 4 should happen naturally. Even better, through this, the show would also be taking some pressure off from Hemsworth and his version of Geralt.
The Witcher Might Not Be Able To Shake Off One Big Complaint
While shifting the focus of Netflix’sThe Witcherfrom Geralt to Ciri would be beneficial to the show and Hemsworth, it would also make a big complaint even worse.The Witcherhas faced a lot of criticism for different reasons, but the biggest one is the changes it has made to the source material. Although Ciri is a main character in the books, and a very important one, Geralt is still the lead character, and shifting the focus to Ciri in season 4 risks making this particular complaint even bigger.
However, and as mentioned above, this shift comes naturally after everything season 3 set up, so the complaint might not be that big or be there at all.The Witcherseason 4 has to be smart in how it handles its Geralt recastand the biggest stories of the rest of the main characters, and this can be key to its success or failure.
The Witcher
The Witcher, released in 2019, follows Geralt of Rivia, a mutated monster hunter navigating a turbulent world where humanity’s darker nature often eclipses the monstrous.
