The Witcher teaser: Henry Cavill brings Geralt of Rivia to life in upcoming Netflix fantasy series

Catching fans of the solitary monster hunter by surprise, Netflix released the teaser trailer for The Witcher online on 20 July (Saturday). The makers had also unveiled it at the ongoing San Diego Comic-Con on Friday.

Henry Cavill in a still from The Witcher. YouTube

Watch The Witcher's trailer.

The Witcher is based on the best-selling fantasy series by Andrzej Sapkowski and follows Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill) as he struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him towards a powerful sorceress and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three learn to navigate the increasingly volatile continent together. The series also includes Anya Cholatra as Yennefer and newcomer Freya Allan as Ciri. The book series have also been adapted into a popular popular action RPG video game series.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Cavill spoke about his role at the Comic-Con: "He’s not your average hero. He’s a tough person who won’t treat everybody perfectly. He’s very hard on the exterior because that’s what he believes the world is… and all the decisions get him into trouble."

When the first character poster was revealed in October 2018, many social media users had found Cavill's rendition of Geralt similar to some of the other big screen characters. His platinum stresses reminded some of Lord of the Rings' beloved elf Legolas, while others thought he looked more like Christopher Lambert’s portrayal of the thunder god Raiden from Mortal Kombat. For some users, the uncanny resemblance was with Bob from Twin Peaks.

Lauren Schmidt Hissrich is the executive producer and series showrunner. There is no official release date for The Witcher yet, but the show is expected to air sometime towards the end of 2019.