Henry Cavill, best known as Superman, will star in Netflix's The Witcher series, which will adapt the book and video game series of the same name.
Cavill will play the title role of Geralt of Rivia, a scarred monster hunter who will adventure in a grim fantasy world accompanied by a princess and a sorceress. The news was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter Tuesday, and confirmed by showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich on Twitter as well as by Netflix in a media release.
Hissrich notes in her tweet that Cavill "is Geralt," who is the protagonist of both the original books and the games developed by CD Projekt Red, the studio also responsible for the upcoming Cyberpunk 2077.
He was my first meeting. I didn’t have writers or scripts yet – just a greenlight and a lot of passion. That was four months ago, and I’ve never forgotten the passion he brought. He IS Geralt. He always has been. I’m so thrilled to welcome HENRY CAVILL to the #Witcher family.
— Lauren S. Hissrich (@LHissrich) September 4, 2018
"He was my first meeting. I didn't have writers or scripts yet -- just a greenlight and a lot of passion," Hissrich wrote. She has previously co-executive produced Marvel's The Defenders and Daredevil shows for the streaming service.
Cavill has played the Man of Steel in three movies, including Justice League. The English actor was most recently seen reloading his arms as a mustachioed CIA operative in Mission: Impossible - Fallout.
Netflix first announced the show in May 2017, revealing then that the series would be based on Andrzej Sapkowski's series of Witcher novels, which were also used for the video game series. In April, Hissrich tweeted that the show will be just eight episodes long and may not premiere until 2020:
2020. Who knows?! We're moving quickly ahead with everything -- like, my head is spinning around Exorcist-style, except with enthusiasm, not evil possession -- but one thing is certain: quality comes before speed. You'll get it as soon as humanly possible, and it'll be good.
— Lauren S. Hissrich (@LHissrich) April 20, 2018
CNET has reached out to representatives for Cavill and Hissrich, and will update further should we hear anything else.
