'The Witcher' season 4: Netflix renews series without Henry Cavill, as Liam Hemsworth takes on main protagonist role

News related to the "The Witcher" franchise has been quite abundant in the past few days. Netflix confirmed that its live-action adaptation has been renewed for a fourth season with a major casting change.

Henry Cavill, who portrayed Geralt of Rivia for the past seasons, will no longer reprise the role. "In Season 4, Liam Hemsworth will step in as the titular monster-hunter Geralt of Rivia, the role Henry Cavill originated in the first three seasons," Netflix said in a blog post.

Fans may be more familiar with "The Witcher" as a series of video games developed by CD Projekt. But it is worth noting that the Netflix live-action adaptation is officially based on the original works of author Andrzej Sapkowski. In both the video game and TV series, the story revolves around the adventures of Geralt as one of the few remaining monster-slaying "witchers" set in a medieval fantasy world known as the Continent.

Netflix did not announce any major casting changes so far. In the same blog post, the streaming giant suggested that Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan will reprise their roles as Yennefer of Vengerberg and Ciri, respectively, in "The Witcher" season 4.

It also remains to be seen if the new face of Geralt will be used as a plot device in the upcoming episodes. The announcement of Hemsworth's casting also comes ahead of "The Witcher" season 3, which does not have an exact release date yet.

Netflix only revealed during its Tudum event last month that the third installment will start streaming sometime in summer 2023. Given the production timelines for the past seasons, though, it would not be surprising if fans will have to wait a few years before seeing Hemsworth as Geralt on their screens.

In other related news, CD Projekt confirmed last week that its previously announced Canis Majoris project is a full remake of its first-ever "The Witcher" game using Unreal Engine 5. The video game company emphasized that the remake is still in the early stages of development and asked fans to be patient as getting more information and seeing the game launch will likely take a while.