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Production is currently underway on the fourth season of Netflix’sThe Witcheradaptation. Based on the beloved novels by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, Season 1 was released in 2019 to a relatively positive reception. Starring Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia,The Witcherfollows the titular mutated monster hunter as he begrudgingly finds himself taking care of a young princess who is being hunted by the rulers of every major leader on The Continent. Unfortunately,the subsequent two seasons received far worse reviews and reactions from fans. While critics seemingly agree that the series improved in its following seasons, the fan base’s consensus has been increasingly pessimistic. Season 1 sat at an 89% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. ButSeason 2 saw that jump down to 54%, and Season 3 plummeted to just 19%.
The show was hit with devastating news following its third season, as Henry Cavill announced his departure for still unexplained reasons, withLiam Hemsworth taking overfor the last two seasons. Many die-hard fans stood behind Cavill, proclaiming they would not continue watchingThe Witcherwithout him. Unfortunately, for the fans still clinging on, more bad news has arrived about Season 4, and it might be time to call it quits onThe Witcher.
The Witcher
The Witcher Season 4 Has Lost Another Cast Member
It’s not just Henry Cavill who’s hanging up his silver sword for Season 4. It was recently reported thatKim Bodnia stepped away fromThe Witcherduring the production of the new season. No reason was stated for theKilling Evestar’s departure. A replacement actor has yet to be found or revealed.Bodnia played one of the most beloved characters in the entire franchise, Vesemir, in the show’s second season and was initially confirmed to be returning for Seasons 4 and 5.
With production still well underway on Season 4, Netflix must scramble to find a replacement, as Vesemir will play a big role in the upcoming final two seasons. The loss of Bodnia to Season 4’s cast is just another hill the show will have to climb in its increasingly difficult road to success.Almost the entireWitcherfan base has turned against the series, be it because of the loss of Henry Cavill or due to the countless unnecessary changes made to the source material. Unfortunately, the bad news doesn’t stop there.
It’s Time to Cut The Witcher Franchise Loose
Kim Bodnia stepping away fromThe Witchermight not be enough on its own for fans to bring out their torches and pitchforks and call for Netflix to finally cancelThe Witcher. But it’s yet another issue in a long-troubled series. In fact,The Witcher’s issues stem far beyond the core series, as Netflix has had just as much difficulty with their original spin-offs.The Witcher: Blood Origins, released in 2022, was Netflix’s attempt at telling the origin story of The Continent, about how the world came to be infested with magical creatures. Based on loose accounts from Sapkowski’s novels,Blood Origins’story was almost entirely original and almost entirely hated by the fan base. Both critics and audiences agreed that the show was a weak cash-in onThe WitcherIP, with a 28% critics' score and a 13% audience score.
The Witcher Creator Gets Candid About His Input on Netflix Adaptation; “They Never Listen to Me”
The Witcher creator Andrzej Sapkowski shares his thoughts on the Netflix adaptation, and how his ideas have been received.
Netflix wasn’t done with its original spin-offs, as the streamer had plans to developThe Rats, following a group of secondary characters from the novels on a solo adventure. The Rats were introduced in Season 3, taking Ciri (Freya Allen) along with them as she narrowly escaped the Frying Pan (a barren desert on the East of The Continent). Production was underway on the series but reports claim that Netflix canceled the show outright after being shown rough cuts of the first four episodes. With all the behind-the-scenes trouble, it’s time for Netflix’sWitcherfranchise to come to an end.The Witcheris streaming onNetflix.
