X/@screentime
First official promotional pictures of Liam Hemsworth as Geralt of Rivia for The Witcher Season 4 were released on October 30, 2025. The Australian lifer takes over the iconic role from Henry Cavill, who, after Season 3, left the show because of disagreements over how to approach the show in relation to its source material. The release was a catalyst for a furious online debate about the recasting and the future of the fantasy series.
Advertisement
Well, to be frank, Cavill was almost an impossible act to follow. The man didn’t just play the character; he became the character. So when the first-look pictures of Hemsworth wearing a white wig and armor were released, the internet could not shut up. All sorts of thoughts were being put out!
On full armor, with the familiar white hair and yellow cat eye, he seems to be the Geralt of Liam Hemsworth. But the vibe… is a little different. “He doesn’t even have the aura” a person immediately said, basically the sentiment spreading around. It’s not that Hemsworth looks bad. It’s that he doesn’t look like the Geralt everybody has fallen in love with through three seasons.
Then came straightforward comments: “Looks like an SNL parody lmao.” Ouch! But honestly? Coming from that comparison, it could be one of the more merciful ones. Another one said he looked like “Bill and Ted Geralt,” which again is painfully hilarious and painfully accurate looking at the first look pictures.
So even the costume choices seem to have raised some eyebrows. One replied, “What is that fit? Doesn’t even look like a witcher,” while another followed with, “they turned bro into a biker with a shitty haircut man FUCK.” The wardrobe department really ought to stick a time limit on their intern experience.
But really? One isn’t the point. “Nothing against Liam, I really don’t know his acting ability at all, but they super set him up by making him look like someone trying to look like Henry.” That is where the unspeakable element lies. The showrunners today ask the audience to accept the notion of a new actor for an old character while wanting everything else to stay the same.
The very same creative differences that pitched Cavillor finally out step into this discussion. A fan voiced what everybody’s thinking: “Henry Cavill was right, he doesn’t follow the books anymore, I don’t even understand why there’s a season 4 and 5, They should have stopped at season 3 when he left!!!”
Real concern is expressed for the survival of the series through this transition: “This show will today loose its audience with Henry gone & Netflix moving away from original storyline I see an abrupt cancellation of the series sooner,” speculated another, “Changing major character in a movie makes me lose interest…😔.”
However, not everyone is all doom and gloom about this. Some remain hopeful. “Lost all aura but maybe the acting will impress,” one comment read. “Unfortunately, he’s just not that guy 🥲. Will still series tho,” said another. Probably the most common position – doubtful yet willing to give it a shot.
Of course, the comparison game is inevitable, and for the new guy, it is clearly not sounding good. One typical comment read, “Henry Is the 🐐i miss him,” with a crying emoji. Another said, “I like liam hemsworth but Henry is the og and will remain the og.”
Some fans have very logical thoughts about how the show could have handled the transition better: “Should’ve just killed off geralt. I mean they killed eskel like he was nothing. Make liam a brand new witcher or Lambert.” And that’s really good — bringing in one of the new witchers might have felt less sinking to audiences than trying to put away Cavill.
The more primary issue behind this transition is that most fans think the series was dropping in quality well before all the recasting drama started. “Honestly the show wasn’t good in the first place lol,” admitted one, while another declared, “This show is SO bad today. Last season was straight garbage.”
A sense of it’s just one big missed opportunity hangs in the air. One fan painted an alternate version: “Imagine that in some universe almost identical to ours, HBO got the rights to adapt The Witcher and the series was more successful than Game of Thrones.” Ouch. today, the Netflix leading dogs must be hurting in reading the reaction to this.
Perhaps the most balanced take is from someone who said: “Still the same writers. Still the same runners that thought we were yearning for blood origins and rats.” The take is that Hemsworth is carrying the back end of all the issues the series has, not just Cavill’s shoes.
Advertisement
Listen, trying to recast any major role is always dangerous. Remember when Don Cheadle stepped in for Terrence Howard in Iron Man? You could almost say it worked out. But trying to snapshot basically an entirely new lead actor three seasons in of an adored series? There’s never been anything quite like that. The look into images seems to suggest that right from the get-go, this series is shooting to slide sets of boots from under Cavill while simultaneously changing what is underneath. Whether audience go on to accept this new Geralt or not, that is still to be seen come next October. The White Wolf does have some very large shoes to fill, and, judging by initial responses, it will be a tall order indeed.
About the Author
