The Witcher (2019) Review: Monsters, Magic and a Recast

Is The Witcher worth watching?

Yes. The Witcher is a lavish, entertaining dark fantasy series with a strong central trio and some of the best sword fights on streaming, even if its quality rises and falls from season to season. Its best episodes capture the gritty, sardonic spirit of Andrzej Sapkowski’s books, where people are often worse than the monsters. The reservations are a tangled first season, increasingly crowded politics, and the change of leading man, which asks viewers to adjust mid-story.

What is The Witcher about?

Geralt of Rivia is a witcher, a man mutated through training and magic into a monster hunter for hire, and treated with suspicion almost everywhere he goes. In a continent torn by war and prejudice, his path becomes entangled with two women: Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra), a powerful and ambitious sorceress, and Ciri (Freya Allan), a young princess with mysterious abilities who is being hunted. Travelling with Geralt for much of the way is Jaskier (Joey Batey), a vain, irrepressible bard.

The Witcher was created for television by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich from Sapkowski’s novels and stories, and it is an American production in English for Netflix. Henry Cavill played Geralt for the first three seasons, and Liam Hemsworth took over the role in the fourth. This review covers the first four seasons, 32 episodes released between 2019 and 2025; the series is ongoing.

A grim world with a sense of humour

The show is at its best when it embraces the books’ mix of darkness and wit. Monster hunts are staged as grisly, clever mysteries in which the real villains are frequently human, and the series takes its themes of prejudice, war and exploitation seriously without becoming joyless. Jaskier’s cheerful self-regard provides welcome comic relief, and his catchy ballad in the first season became a pop-culture phenomenon in its own right.

The production values are high. Sword fights are choreographed with real flair, particularly in the first season, and the costumes, creatures and castles give the continent a tactile, lived-in feel. When the series slows down to let its characters talk, it can be surprisingly moving.

Performances that anchor the fantasy

Henry Cavill, a long-time fan of the source material, made Geralt a gruff, laconic figure whose grunts and silences were often funny, and his physical commitment gave the fights their weight. Anya Chalotra is the show’s quiet revelation: her Yennefer is proud, wounded and fiercely intelligent, and her storyline in the first season is among the series’ strongest. Freya Allan grows convincingly into Ciri as the character gains agency and power.

Liam Hemsworth’s arrival in the fourth season inevitably changes the dynamic. He brings his own interpretation to a role that had become closely identified with his predecessor, and how much the switch bothers viewers will depend on their attachment to Cavill’s version.

Where the story loses its way

The first season tells its three main storylines on different timelines without making that clear, which confuses many viewers early on. Later seasons pile on kingdoms, factions and political intrigue, and some of the monster-hunting fun gets lost among council meetings and elaborate schemes. Pacing varies widely, and fans of the books have criticised several adaptation choices as the series has gone on.

Who should watch The Witcher?

It is ideal for fans of dark fantasy, the Witcher games and books, and anyone who enjoys morally grey heroes and sword-and-sorcery action. With four seasons of eight episodes each, it is a substantial commitment. Expect graphic violence, gore, nudity and sexual content, plus strong language; it is aimed at adults.

If you want more fantasy on this scale:

• The Rings of Power, a more stately, reverent high fantasy with lavish world-building.
• The Sandman, a darker, more literary fantasy series from Netflix built on myth and nightmares.

The verdict

The Witcher is an enjoyable, often thrilling fantasy series with memorable characters, strong action and a grim sense of humour. Its storytelling is uneven and the recasting adds an extra hurdle, but its world and performances make it well worth the journey for genre fans.

Rating: 4/5