Why is Liam Hemsworth replacing Henry Cavill in The Witcher Season 4? Possible reasons explored

Based on the beloved series of novels written by Andrzej Sapkowski, The Witcher has been a part of genre fans' lives for almost six years. The first season started streaming on Netflix in 2019 with Superman actor Henry Cavill playing Geralt of Rivia. Cavill has built a reputation amongst his fans as a huge nerd, and that's why it was shocking when it was revealed that Cavill was stepping down as Geralt.

On October 30, 2022, Henry Cavill posted on his Instagram account that he was exiting Netflix's The Witcher despite being a huge fan of the novels and the games. He also named Liam Hemsworth as his replacement in the same post. Fans have been wondering about the reason why Cavill left the show, but no official statement has been made from either Cavill or Netflix's side, probably due to legal reasons.

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Why is Liam Hemsworth replacing Henry Cavill as The Witcher?

As of today, we don't know why Henry Cavill exited his role as Geralt of Rivia. No official answer has been given to the audience yet. Usually, non-disclosure agreements or NDAs and numerous other binding contracts legally force actors and even crew members to not publicly reveal behind-the-scenes events. This is why there is no official answer behind Cavill exiting The Witcher either from the actors' or producers' side.

However, that hasn't stopped the internet from formulating theories of the reason behind Cavill leaving The Witcher. One of the popular theories is that Cavill disapproved of the makers veering away from the source material. Henry Cavill's love for both The Witcher games and novels.

Even if Cavill was elated to learn that He was playing Geralt back in 2018, sticking to the source materials was more important to him. The Witcher Seasons 2 and 3 started to change a lot from the lore to the chagrin of Henry Cavill, who wanted to get Geralt right. This is why people believe Cavill exited the Netflix series and was replaced by Liam Hemsworth.

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What did Liam Hemsworth say about replacing Cavill as Geralt?

Fans of both Cavill and The Witcher series responded negatively to his exit as Geralt. The reception to Hemsworth replacing Cavill has also been a bit lukewarm, despite the first look of the actor as Geralt in May 2024.

A few months ago, Liam Hemsworth sat down for an interview in which he addressed his feelings about taking over the iconic role. He also revealed that he was introduced to these characters through the game. Here is what he said in that interview:

"I hadn’t seen the TV show. And I hadn’t read the books. But I played the video game like ten years ago or something. And it’s still to this day one of the best video games of all time. And Netflix came to me almost two years ago now and said that they wanted me to just step in and take over. I was really excited by taking on that character because I was a fan of the video game. But I said, you know, let me watch the TV show and have a look at the books and really get stuck into it. I’ve been shooting a show called The Witcher for the past nine months. We were [in Wales] for two weeks. And the first week was beautiful sunshine, blue skies. And then the second week was kind of like tornado season."

It is to be noted that while Cavill exited the series, his co-stars chose to come back. So when Hemsworth was asked about his experience of working with those actors, he expressed pleasure in working with them. He also compared his experience to all the actors who have played the Doctor in Doctor Who. He said:

"This was a really unique situation that I don’t think many actors have ever dealt with apart from maybe the people who have played Doctor Who characters over the years because predominantly the rest of the cast has stayed the same, but the lead actor has changed. For me, it felt like coming in and starting high school when everyone else is already friends and has relationships with each other and has been there since the beginning. At times you kind of feel like an outsider, and it’s nothing like any of the cast or crew has treated me in that way. Everyone has been nothing but welcoming and extremely aware of what the situation is."

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Do you think Liam Hemsworth can fill Henry Cavill's shoes? Who could say? A few years ago, fans said that no one could replace Henry Cavill as Superman, and yet from what we can see, David Corenswet has impressed fans with his version of the Man of Steel. So, Hemsworth should also be given a chance.

Until the release date for the fourth season is announced, you can watch the three seasons of The Witcher on Netflix.