Leaked photos from the set of The Witcher Season 4 have revealed a first look at the Geralt of Rivia played by Liam Hemsworth, who replaces Henry Cavill in the role after three seasons.
As reported by Metro, which hosts the photos, a handful of leaked images show Hemsworth in the full Witcher gear, white wig and all. Interestingly, the photos show the recreation of a Season 3 scene in which, spoilers, Geralt fights Vilgefortz on a beach.
This is likely for flashback purposes, as it would perhaps be odd if Netflix flashed back to scenes of Cavill's Geralt while Hemsworth is in the role. It's therefore possible Netflix will need to reshoot older scenes too, from across the entire three seasons of The Witcher.
Netflix announced in November 2022 that The Witcher would continue without its leading man as Cavill walked away after three seasons. The actor hasn't given an explicit reason for leaving, though said in November 2021 he was absolutely committed to a seven season run of The Witcher "as long as we can keep telling great stories which honor Sapkowski's work."
Co-star Freya Allan, who plays Geralt's adopted daughter Ciri in the show, has said she feels sorry for Hemsworth as he deals with what's "not an ideal situation", but hopes fans give him a chance.
Critical reception of The Witcher is mixed so far, with IGN awarding Season 1 a 6/10, Season 2 a 7/10, and Season 3 a 7/10 and 5/10 over its split season in our reviews. "The Witcher closes out its most compromised season yet by once again losing Henry Cavill in the clunky, plot-heavy shuffle," we said of the most recent episodes.
Showrunner Lauren Hissrich said the show could've ended or moved on without Geralt after Cavill's departure, but Netflix wasn't willing to because "there's just too many stories left to tell."
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.
