Netflix’s fantasy epic “The Witcher” has come under fire over the years for straying considerably from the source material of the books and games.
Combine that with stories of behind-the-scenes issues and Henry Cavill’s abrupt exit from the Geralt of Rivia role, and there’s been a lot of finger-pointing going on from fandom directed at the film’s writers and producers.
In a recent interview with Wyborcza (translated from Polish by Redanian Intelligence), executive producer Tomek Baginski was asked about the some of the more controversial changes from the source material.
He says sometimes the changes are “the result of production chaos” such as ill actors or stretched timetables. Other times they see it as “necessary” to simplify these stories in order to engage modern global audiences who don’t necessarily understand the full context of the material’s Polish author:
“When a series is made for a huge mass of viewers, with different experiences, from different parts of the world, and a large part of them are Americans, these simplifications not only make sense, they are necessary.
It’s painful for us, and for me too, but the higher level of nuance and complexity will have a smaller range, it won’t reach people. Sometimes it may go too far, but we have to make these decisions and accept them.”
Liam Hemsworth will replace Cavill in the Geralt role for the show’s fourth season and joins returnees Freya Allan as Princess Ciri, Anya Chalotra as Yennefer of Vengerberg, and Joey Batey as Jaskier.
The third season of “The Witcher” is now available in full on Netflix.
