Liam Hemsworth Finds Filming The Witcher Much Harder Than Making Movies

Two years have passed since Netflix’s season 3 of The Witcher, and with its sprawling cast and dense mythology, viewers could easily use a refresher. Instead of a typical “previously on” montage, showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich opted for an in-world recap: season 4 begins with a scene set a century after the main events, where a storyteller reads aloud the legend of Geralt of Rivia to a circle of children.

That device echoes Andrzej Sapkowski’s books, where characters frequently reinterpret events as they pass them along. The season’s opening leans into this tradition by framing key scenes as Bard Jaskier’s (Joey Batey) embellished retelling—complete with more kikimora in a familiar fight—while also introducing the most notable alteration: a new actor playing Geralt.

Liam Hemsworth steps into the role previously held by Henry Cavill, who departed after season 3. Hemsworth appears in pivotal flashbacks that chart Geralt’s fraught relationship with Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra) and the couple’s guardianship of Princess Cirilla of Cintra (Freya Allan)—the very first sequences the three actors filmed together.

“We had a lot of laughs. It was just so odd seeing each other in costume, a new trio in a way,” Chalotra said during a Zoom roundtable with Polygon. “We all felt like we were in dress-up in some way. We’ve all moved on from that.”

The initial awkwardness quickly softened.

“It’s a huge thing to come on in the fourth season and take on this incredibly complex role, both as Geralt and the guy who leads the show,” Chalotra added. “Because of that, I was surprised about how calm and safe I really felt with Liam, and as Yennefer with Geralt. There was a real ease. It was just so natural.”

The recap also revisits the season 3 cliffhanger in which the sorcerer Vilgefortz (Mahesh Jadu) nearly kills Geralt—an incident that helped Hemsworth find a fresh, believable entry point for the character.

“There’s a lot of doubt, a lot of frustration,” Hemsworth explained. “He’s severely injured, and it’s a place that I don’t think Geralt has been in much in his life. When it does actually get into moments where he can react to a situation, I wanted it to feel a little unhinged, and not as calculated as he normally would be—less collected than usual. I wanted those early fight scenes to be reactive; a place for him to release that frustration.”

Before taking on Geralt, Hemsworth was best known for film roles in franchises like The Hunger Games and the blockbuster Independence Day: Resurgence. He says television presented a different set of demands.

“You’re juggling eight episodes at once instead of a single script, and directors change every couple of episodes,” Hemsworth said. “As an actor you take on more responsibility for the continuity of your character—making sure the next director understands where you were emotionally the week before.”

Season 4 was filmed back-to-back with the show’s fifth and final season, and Hemsworth singled out the grueling schedule—particularly the struggle to find restful sleep during the extended shoot—as the biggest personal challenge.

The Witcher season 4 premieres on Netflix on Oct. 30.

Source: Polygon