The latest season of Netflix’s The Witcher has landed – with one big difference.
Former lead actor Henry Cavill has been replaced as the main character Geralt of Rivia by Liam Hemsworth.
The Australian has stepped in for the final two seasons of the fantasy show, based on a popular series of novels and video games.
Previously, British actor Cavill had portrayed the title character, a monster hunter with supernatural abilities known as the White Wolf.
When he announced he was “passing the torch” to Hemsworth in October 2022, describing him as a “fantastic” actor, not all fans agreed.
Some even threatened to boycott the series without, and Hemsworth has admitted Cavill is a “daunting” act to follow.
Early reviews have been mixed, with US magazine Variety calling season four an “upgrade“, while the Guardian says Hemsworth is “as charismatic as a bollard in a wig“.
BBC Newsbeat caught up with professional reviewers to get their thoughts on the latest episodes – and whether the new Geralt is up to the job.
Why did Henry Cavill leave the Witcher?
Henry Cavill’s love of nerd culture is well-known, and he’s been vocal about his love of video games, sci-fi and fantasy.
There’s been no official explanation for his departure from The Witcher, but it’s been suggested that creative differences played a part.
He’s spoken in interviews about being “loyal to the source material” and the importance of keeping Geralt the same as the character in the books.
Since leaving, he’s landed a role as a producer and star of Amazon’s upcoming Warhammer 40,000 series – something he’s described as a dream role.
Sabrina Barr, TV Editor at Metro, says Henry Cavill was the “epitome of Geralt”, and admits seeing Hemsworth in the role was “jarring” at first.
But she tells Newsbeat he he does a “good job” and is “brave” for taking on the character.
People would criticise ‘no matter who it was’
In her three-and-a-half star review, Sabrina says apprehensive Witcher fans should “give it a chance”.
“I’ve got to give them credit for taking a really difficult situation and deciding to run with their creative vision,” she says.
“In my opinion, this season isn’t the best of them, but I still had a really good time with it. I was gripped by the very different story lines.”
Sabrina tells Newsbeat it’s “extremely rare” to change the main actor in between seasons, but this, in her opinion, is an example of “how it can work” if there’s no other choice.
“I personally would have been a lot more upset if they just cancelled the show,” she says.
“I have to give them credit for carrying on the story, knowing full well that from the very start there would be people criticising the choice of main actor no matter who it was.”
Dawson Roberts, a content creator who focuses on TV, film and gaming as DawsOnScreen, was invited to the premiere of the new season.
He agrees the actor swap is “definitely a bit weird” but tells Newsbeat the transition is handled well by the show’s cast and crew.
In his view, Liam Hemsworth does a “pretty good” job in the main role.
“I’m not going to lie and say he’s better than Henry Cavill,” says Dawson.
“But I do think Liam Hemsworth does a really solid job. You get used to it really quickly. He’s got the right energy.
“Losing Henry Cavill is tough but I do think they have built that trust with the audience so now it does work.”
Dawson says the unsung hero of the series is actor Laurence Fishburne, who joins the cast as vampire Regis.
“People aren’t giving enough credit to Laurence Fishburne,” he says.
“He’s never done a fantasy role before and I think he kills it.”
As for Dawson’s verdict, he says he’s closer to “the seven or eight out of 10 than the two-star reviews”.
“It’s definitely not the best show ever,” he says.
“But it’s still really exciting to see the game world brought to life on the screen – even if it is without Henry Cavill.”
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