The Witcher season 4 review: Liam Hemsworth’s Geralt falls flat as Netflix flagship fantasy loses its magic

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A star rating of 2 out of 5.

When Henry Cavill, the star of Netflix’s popular fantasy show The Witcher and a known fan of the books, announced in 2022 that he was leaving the role of Geralt, many viewers were shocked and upset.

Liam Hemsworth, known for his role in The Hunger Games, was recently revealed as the new actor taking on the role of the White Wolf for the last two seasons of the show. However, the announcement wasn’t well-received by many fans, who felt Henry Cavill had perfectly embodied the character and set a high standard. This created some negativity surrounding the project.

Putting aside any worries about the actors, it’s clear the writers have significantly changed the original story in season 4. They’ve taken a lot of creative freedoms with character development and plot points, which has upset fans of both Andrzej Sapkowski’s books and the CD Projekt games.

The third season tried to get things back on track with a closer adaptation of the books, but season four has even more hurdles to overcome. Will Netflix regain viewers by introducing popular characters like Regis and Leo Bonhart? Or will Henry Cavill leaving the show ultimately spell the end for the series?

Following the dramatic and world-changing events of the Thanedd Coup, season 4 finds Geralt (Henry Cavill), Yennefer (Anya Chalotra), and Ciri (Freya Allan) separated and trying to survive in a Continent torn apart by war.

Ciri, once the young princess of Cintra, is now going by the name “Falka” and running with a group of rebel outlaws called the Rats. Meanwhile, Geralt starts a new mission to rescue someone, and along the way, he teams up with an unlikely group of allies. At the same time, Yennefer is trying to gather the remaining sorceresses to finally confront Vilgefortz, the powerful mage who has been secretly controlling events.

Fortunately, this new season isn’t broken up into parts. The long wait between volumes last season really disrupted the flow of the story. This time, Netflix released the entire season at once, which is a smart move.

The complex relationships between Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri are revisited through a unique storytelling approach. Characters from a book within the series, Stribog and Nimue, retell past events, weaving together the myths and legends from Andrzej Sapkowski’s original novels.

I really loved how season 3 brought our main characters together as a family, and seeing their stories finally connect was amazing. But honestly, this new season is tough to watch because they’re all so far apart now, and it’s really frustrating!

Considering the long wait – over two years – and the recent news about Henry Cavill leaving, it’s hard to get enthusiastic about seeing another search for Ciri.

This fourth installment is unfortunately a letdown, feeling inconsistent and noticeably lower in quality than previous entries. The story’s changing mood, combined with varying acting and production values, sometimes pushes the series into overly dramatic territory.

The story has become incredibly complex, with so many characters, places, and groups that are constantly changing sides. This has created a lot of different storylines that are hard to keep track of.

Some storylines are much more interesting than others. Sharlto Copley delivers a particularly engaging performance as the notorious bounty hunter Leo Bonhart, and he makes a far more effective villain than the underwhelming Vilgefortz.

However, the storyline following The Rats feels slow and unengaging, lacking the appealing personality and energy of the Crow characters from Shadow and Bone. It’s also a shame that Ciri’s father, Emhyr var Emreis (played by Bart Edwards), hasn’t been featured much lately.

The series does a good job of bringing key events from Baptism of Fire to life, including the introduction of popular characters like Regis and Leo Bonhart, Ciri’s challenging journey with The Rats, and the battle at the Yaruga bridge. However, Yennefer’s storyline – and how the Lodge of Sorceresses came to be – has been altered quite a bit.

Replacing Henry Cavill as Geralt was a risky decision, and sadly, it doesn’t pay off. Seeing and hearing Liam Hemsworth in the role feels very out of place. Instead of matching Cavill’s deep, rough voice, Hemsworth surprisingly adopts an accent similar to his brother Chris, who plays Thor.

Although the Australian actor performs the action scenes well, he doesn’t quite capture the essence of the monster hunter. He isn’t as physically strong as the previous actor, and he doesn’t bring the same sense of quiet strength or believable connection with others to the role.

Just as many suspected from the criticized trailer (“Let’s go!” being a prime example), the writers haven’t quite captured the essence of the show’s main character, resulting in clunky dialogue and a personality that feels inconsistent.

Even though the show’s creator, Lauren Smith Hissrich, has stated the series isn’t reliant on any single actor, a lot of viewers watched primarily because of Henry Cavill’s performance and the charming connection he had with his co-stars, Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan.

Chris Hemsworth tries his best with the script, but his performance doesn’t quite land, and it could be the breaking point for some dedicated fans.

Fans of Jaskier (Joey Batey) might be disappointed, as his character seems to have lost some of the growth he showed last season, now primarily serving as a source of humor.

The composer behind popular songs like “Toss a Coin to Your Witcher” and “Burn Butcher Burn” didn’t quite hit the mark with the music in this season’s episode. The strangely out-of-place, Aladdin-inspired musical scene in the otherwise strong episode, “The Joy of Cooking,” is likely to be controversial among viewers.

The show’s quality also varies noticeably. The Battle for the Bridge is visually impressive, despite some issues with the ogre effects, but the Battle of Montecalvo feels underwhelming because of weak set design and unconvincing magical effects.

With Henry Cavill leaving the show, and facing issues with inconsistent writing, a jarring tone, and weak acting and visuals, the spark seems to have gone out of Netflix’s big fantasy series. Unless the final season is a truly stunning turnaround, it’s looking like this story might not have a happy ending – even for Geralt.

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2025-10-30 12:05