Henry Cavill is leaving The Witcher: what could be the reason, who’s taking his place in the Netflix series

Although The Witcher won’t return to small screens until next year, Netflix has renewed the show for a fourth season and announced a major change.

On Saturday, the streaming giant said Liam Hemsworth, known for his role as Gale Hawthorne in The Hunger Games film series, will replace Henry Cavill as the main character, Geralt of Rivia. The two actors have already posted details of the casting change on social media.

“My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures and sadly I will be laying down my medallion and swords,” Cavill said on Instagram. “In my place, the fantastic Mr. Liam Hemsworth will take up the mantle of the White Wolf. As with the most important of literary characters, I hand over the torch with reverence and do so for my time spent portraying Geralt, but also with excitement to see how Liam will play him,” Henry Cavill wrote of his departure from The Witcher.

Where Henry Cavill might go

Cavill hasn’t shared an exact reason for his departure, but there is one major hunch. Recently, the actor confirmed that he will reprise his role in the Superman franchise.

Aside from making the show watchable, since everyone already knew his name, the actor has spoken extremely highly of the show, time and time again, and that has helped, too.

“I really feel a connection to Geralt, to who he is and his nature,” he told Polygon in 2019.

Netflix has not released a release date for season four of The Witcher. Season three began filming earlier this year. At Tudum, the company said the series will return sometime in the summer of 2023. In the meantime, fans are looking forward to The Witcher: Blood Origin, a prequel series starring Michelle Yeoh, which will be released on December 25.