The Witcher: Why is Henry Cavill giving up his dream role of Geralt of Rivia?

When the news broke recently that Henry Cavill was leaving The Witcher, fans were shocked.

After all, Cavill actively pursued the role before it was even in development.

Australian actor Liam Hemsworth has now been recast as Geralt of Rivia, and he will appear in Season 4.

Many agree there is nothing hugely wrong with Cavill’s replacement.

However, they are having a very hard time imagining anyone being able to step into Geralt of Rivia’s impressive shoes.

And now, while some suspect it is Cavill’s role as Superman that has drawn him away from The Witcher, others believe it might have something to do with creative differences.

Henry Cavill has been cast as Superman

The official word from Henry Cavill and Netflix is that the actor has left The Witcher due to a conflict in scheduling.

Previously, Cavill has portrayed Superman in the DC Comics universe, and fans were just as impressed with how he portrayed Clark Kent as he did Geralt of Rivia.

When he joined the cast of The Witcher, it seemed DC fans would not get to see him fulfill this role again as he was solely intent on bringing Geralt to life.

However, it appears he was finally won over and has signed on to play this character again. As noted by Forbes, it seems likely that this role pays much better than The Witcher.

Although, as Redanian Intelligence notes, Cavill’s pay jumped significantly between Seasons 2 and 3 of The Witcher. In Season 2, it is believed he earned $400,000 per episode, which jumped to $1 million in Season 3.

However, money might not be the deciding factor for this dedicated actor.

The Witcher’s TV adaptation may have veered too far from the source

Since he was first cast, Henry Cavill, an avid fan of both the books and the games, has been vocal about ensuring he gets Geralt right according to these source materials.

During promotional tours for The Witcher, Cavill has regularly stated that he intended to bring an accurate version of Geralt into Netflix’s adaptation.

“As far as the preparation goes, coming into this, I wanted the character to have a closer relationship to the character in the books,” Cavill once told Hardware Zone.

“I wanted him to be more book accurate. And so it was more to do with making sure and campaigning for him to sound more intellectual, more philosophical, and to have an emotional side as well, rather than just be a grumpy snowman. Every day I was pushing this stuff as far as prep goes.”

And, because of these sorts of Cavill comments, some viewers wonder if the actor left The Witcher because the TV show had deviated much too far from the books, something which was brought up by fans various times once Season 2 dropped last year.

In addition, one of The Witcher’s past writers recently went on record to say that the team behind the Netflix adaptation was not as dedicated to the source material as Cavill was.

“I’ve been on a show — namely [The] Witcher — where some of the writers were not or actively disliked the books and games (even actively mocking the source material),” Beau DeMayo told The Direct.

“It’s a recipe for disaster and bad morale. Fandom as a litmus test checks egos and makes all the long nights worth it. You have to respect the work before you’re allowed to add to its legacy.”

While there is evidence to suggest that Cavill may have left The Witcher due to creative differences, there has been no official statement yet, which may not come until the actor has completed his stint in the TV show — or never.

Season 2 of The Witcher is currently available to stream on Netflix.