Liam Hemsworth Went to Extreme Lengths to Dodge Henry Cavill Backlash on ‘The Witcher’

Liam Hemsworth is ready to face the fans as the new Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher Season 4, but he admits stepping into Henry Cavill’s shoes wasn’t easy.

In a recent interview, Hemsworth revealed how he prepared for the backlash and stayed focused on the role.

“There was quite a bit of noise and I had to put that aside. It started to become a distraction. I dealt with that sort of thing in the past a lot and, you know, at the end of the day, I love making movies and I love telling stories and acting. I just don’t want any of that to affect my way of telling the story that I’m trying to tell. I jumped off social media and the internet most of last year,” Hemsworth said.

Netflix announced in 2022 that Cavill would leave the series after Season 3. Showrunner Lauren Hissrich explained that Cavill’s departure had been planned for some time, as the actor wanted to explore other projects like Warhammer 40K and a Highlander reboot. Cavill had also considered returning as Superman, which ultimately didn’t happen.

Hemsworth, a longtime fan of The Witcher video games, admitted he was surprised when he was offered the role. “It came out of nowhere. I was as surprised as anyone,” he said.

Instead of trying to copy Cavill, Hemsworth focused on finding his own interpretation of Geralt. He looked to the books and previous seasons for guidance and wanted to highlight Geralt’s protective side, connecting it to his own experience growing up with a father who worked in child protection. He also aimed to explore the humor and humanity behind Geralt’s gruff exterior.

Season 4 of The Witcher premieres October 30 on Netflix, with all eight episodes available at once. With the fifth and final season already in production, Hemsworth’s version of Geralt will play a key role as the story moves toward the conclusion of Andrzej Sapkowski’s saga.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!