The Witcher Season 4’s Geralt & Ciri Change Will Make It Harder For Season 5 To Nail The Show’s Most Important Dynamic
The Witcher season 4 will be the debut of Liam Hemsworth as Geralt, and in terms of narrative, it also has some big challenges ahead. Thanks to the events of the ending of The Witcher season 3 and the Thanedd Coup, season 4 will see some of the books’ darkest storylines, but they’re also bringing a big problem for Ciri and Geralt – and with The Witcher ending with its fifth season, this problem is bigger and more worrying.
Geralt & Ciri Won’t Be Together For Much Of The Witcher Season 4
The changes to the source material aren’t the only criticism Netflix’s The Witcher has faced so far. Season 1 was told in a non-linear style and focused on the separate stories of Ciri, Geralt, and Yennefer (Anya Chalotra), so the first season didn’t see them together, except for Geralt and Yennefer a couple of times, and in the season’s final scene, Geralt and Ciri finally met. By the end of season 2, Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer were finally together, but not before the show briefly turned Yennefer into a villain.
One of the strengths of The Witcher season 3 was finally having these three characters together, but part 2 saw them having to part ways again.
The Witcher season 3 ended with Geralt setting out with Jaskier and Milva to find Ciri, but it’s already known that they won’t reunite soon. Speaking to Screen Rant at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, Freya Allan revealed she doesn’t have scenes with Hemsworth, as Ciri is forging her own path in season 4. While this could benefit Hemsworth’s debut, it brings a bigger challenge for Ciri and Geralt in the show’s final season.
This Geralt & Ciri Change Means Liam Hemsworth Only Has 1 Season To Nail Their Dynamic
With Geralt and Ciri not sharing scenes in The Witcher season 4, it means that season 5 is the final chance for the show to get Hemsworth’s dynamic with Ciri right. Hemsworth’s Witcher debut is tricky because the audience is well-used by now to Henry Cavill’s version of Geralt, so Hemsworth has to find a way to carry on with what Cavill started but without feeling like a copy. Geralt and Ciri being apart in The Witcher season 4 will allow Hemsworth to build his own version of Geralt without the pressure of his dynamic with Ciri, but this will directly affect season 5.
Hemsworth will now only have one season to build the dynamic of his Geralt with Ciri and get it right, more so as season 5 is the final one and, as such, it will cover some key events. It took Cavill’s Geralt and Ciri an entire season to build their bond and get their dynamic right, and they continued it for one more season, but Hemsworth’s Geralt will only get one season to get the show’s core dynamic right.
Getting The Most Important Connection Right Is Crucial For The Witcher Season 5’s Ending
Netflix’s The Witcher has two seasons left but three more books to cover, so it’s expected that season 5 will cover part of The Tower of the Swallow and the key events in The Lady of the Lake. As such, the show’s final season will see Ciri, Geralt, and Yennefer confronting Vilgefortz, his henchmen, and the White Flame, with Ciri saving them from the latter and later saying goodbye to Geralt and Yennefer in a very ambiguous ending.
The Witcher season 5, then, promises to be a very emotional ride, and it won’t work if Hemsworth’s dynamic with Ciri isn’t right. Geralt and Ciri’s connection is so important that it can make or break The Witcher’s final season, and after all the problems the show has faced, it needs to end on a high note. The Witcher seasons 4 and 5 have some big challenges ahead, and hopefully, they will overcome most, if not all, of them.
