Superman actor and human weapon Henry Cavill has long been teasing his interest in playing Geralt of Rivia in Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of The Witcher, but only today has the casting become official. Both showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich (Marvel’s Daredevil, Marvel’s The Defenders, Umbrella Academy) and Cavill himself confirmed the news on social media.
He was my first meeting. I didn’t have writers or scripts yet – just a greenlight and a lot of passion. That was four months ago, and I’ve never forgotten the passion he brought. He IS Geralt. He always has been. I’m so thrilled to welcome HENRY CAVILL to the #Witcher family.
— Lauren S. Hissrich (@LHissrich) September 4, 2018
A press release from Netflix described the premise of the show, which will adapt the novels by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, which in turn inspired the video games of the same name.
Based on the best-selling fantasy series, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.
The Witcher will be eight episodes long, with directors Alik Sakharov (House of Cards, Game of Thrones), Alex Garcia Lopez (Marvel’s Luke Cage, Utopia), and Charlotte Brändström (Outlander, Counterpart, Disparue) attached to helm these episodes.
Fan reactions to Cavill’s casting have been mixed, with many calling into question his age and level of charisma. I say have no fear—while his work on The Tudors is significantly different, at least it demonstrates that Cavill can pull off a period-ish look and performance. And yes, Cavill with or without mustache is mostly lacking as Superman in the Zack Snyder-directed films, but look no further than The Man From U.N.C.L.E. to see some quality acting from him.
The Witcher will release on Netflix’s digital platform with no release window currently set.
