Henry Cavill is out, Liam Hemsworth is in, and monsters across the Continent tremble in fear! Today, Netflix finally released the first full-length trailer for the fourth season of The Witcher, its monster-hunting fantasy show based on the novels by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. After a surprise teaser drop late last month that confirmed The Witcher season 4 is premiering on October 30, we've been waiting impatiently to get a better look at the season, and especially at new series star Liam Hemsworth, who is stepping into the lead role of Geralt of Rivia following the departure of Henry Cavill after season 3.
Well, wait no longer! You can watch the trailer below, which not only gives us plenty of Geralt, but also his surrogate daughter Ciri (Freya Allan), his sorceress love Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra), the villainous mage Vilgefortz of Rogeveen (Mahesh Jadu), and the mysterious denizen of the night known as Regis, played by The Matrix star Laurence Fishburne. Watch, and then we'll discuss:
The Witcher season 4 trailer
There's a lot to unpack in this trailer. Obviously, the biggest thing is Liam Hemsworth's debut as Geralt. This is the first time we've seen him deliver lines as the mutated monster hunter. Hemsworth has a much softer inflection than Henry Cavill did, and throws around a lot of smoldering looks. Showrunner Lauren S. Hissirch told Entertainment Weekly that she and Hemsworth wanted to lean a bit more into Geralt's sex appeal this season, which comes through in this trailer, for better or worse.
We also get some cool footage of Ciri hanging out with her new friends, the band of teenage thieves known as the Rats. Meanwhile, Yennefer is gathering an army of sorceresses to oppose Vilgefortz, who for some reason is building an army of his own. Vilgefortz himself may be the highlight of the trailer, with actor Mahesh Jadu's gentle voice serving as a chilling contrast to the sorcerer's horrific new prosthetic eye after half his face was melted off in the explosion on the Isle of Thanedd in season 3.
Another important element of the trailer is that we see Geralt with members of his traveling party, called his hansa in the books. Some we already know, like the bard Jaskier (Joey Batey), but we'll meet plenty of new faces in season 4 as Geralt traverses the Continent in search of Ciri. Foremost among them is Emiel Regis Rohellec Terzieff-Godefroy, called Regis for short, a barber-surgeon with a dark secret. Laurence Fishburne will play this character in season 4. I don't love that casting, but I do love Laurence Fishburne in just about anything, so I'm willing to give Netflix the benefit of the doubt on this one and see what he does with the role.
As you might have gathered from those descriptions, our main trio of heroes will be split up for most of season 4, each with their own circle of confidants and supporters. Netflix's official description for The Witcher season 4 confirms as much:
The Witcher season 4 synopsis
After the Continent-altering events of Season Three, Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri find themselves separated by a raging war and countless enemies. As their paths diverge, and their goals sharpen, they stumble on unexpected allies eager to join their journeys. And if they can accept these found families, they just might have a chance at reuniting for good…
The fourth season of The Witcher is primarily based on Sapkowski's book Baptism of Fire. I'd expect it to also bring in some events from the following book, Tower of Swallows, which has a much stronger focus on Ciri. After this, The Witcher is set to wrap up with a fifth and final season, which will finish off the material from Tower of Swallows and The Lady of the Lake, bringing the story to its conclusion.
All eight episodes of The Witcher season 4 premiere October 30 on Netflix.