“The Witcher” starring Henry Cavill could not live up to expectations due to one decision by showrunners
Henry Cavill held high hopes for “The Witcher” only to face a bitter reality after three seasons.
“The Witcher” is once thought to be a global fantasy-action hit that can rival HBO’s hit series “Game of Thrones.” The series stars Henry Cavill and is based on the best-selling novel of writer Andrzej Sapkowski. At the same time, having affirmed itself as a brand, “The Witcher” franchise also accumulated a massive fanbase with a wide range of toys and merchandise produced by CD Projekt RED.
Nonetheless, the series is faced with many obstacles after airing the first episodes of season 3 a few days ago. Screenrant pointed out that the number of audience following the series has dropped by 15% compared to that of season 2 and by 60% compared to the first season. When Netflix acquired the rights to adapt “The Witcher,” they were transparent about the plan to carve a cinematic universe from the original novel, including live-action and animated series to further make use of the existing fanbase. However, fans are turning their backs on the series.
One primary reason is Henry Cavill leaving the cast. At the end of last year, the actor announced he would not be playing Geralt after the second season. Netflix later announced that Liam Hemsworth would be his replacement.
Fans of the series speculate there might have been a dispute between Cavill and the crew that led to the final departure. The actor – who is also a big fan of the original work – claimed that Netflix was taking the series down a different path, straying far from the original novel. To him and a large number of fans, an adaptation has to respect the original work as much as possible.
However, Netflix did the opposite. They wanted to add new details to refresh the script for the series. From season 1, the production team has altered the images of the original characters, changed their background stories, and twisted their fates.
Henry Cavill implied his dissatisfaction with this change, saying it was difficult to balance the showrunners’ direction and his love for “The Witcher.” All he wanted was for the directors and writers to stick to the original materials.
Low-quality production is another reason that makes fans turn away from the series. The ratings for the series fall gradually from season 1 with 89% Tomatometer to 58%, a low score for a big-budget series. Most critics took a jab at “The Witcher”’s confusing storytelling and messy timeline that makes it hard for viewers to follow easily.
The first season starring Henry Cavill, a great actor and a hardcore fan of the original series, acquired some success and opened up new opportunities for the series to be the next big hit. Nonetheless, by messing up the original story and its known and loved characters, Netflix sets itself up for an inevitable downfall. After Henry Cavill announced his departure, the future of the series is becoming more vague than ever.
Source: screenrant
