‘The Witcher’ Star Henry Cavill And Show Creator Lauren Schmidt Hissrich Make Surprise Appearance At CCXP To Share Clips And Final Trailer

Dino-Ray Ramos

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After yesterday’s ovation for Marvel and Star Wars, you would think that the CCXP crowd couldn’t get any louder. Well, they outdid themselves Sunday during the Netflix panel. A sizzle reel of the best streaming platform’s greatest hits played, ending with The Witcher, which received enormous praise from the crowd, but once the show’s star Henry Cavill stepped on the stage to surprise the audience, they were unhinged with joy.

Show creator Lauren Schmidt Hissrich joined Cavill for the surprise as they talked about the adaptation of the namesake fantasy novels that has gained a rabid following. Cavill, who plays the grim Geralt of Rivia admits that he was a fan of the novels. As for Hissrich, she loved the fantasy but wanted the fighting and action to move the story forward.

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“I knew I wanted to make a show about family. It’s about Geralt, Ciri and Yen… that’s what I care about most,” said Hissrich.

And her approach to the series folds in perfectly with the synopsis of the series which touts The Witcher as an “epic tale of fate and family. The story of the intertwined destinies of three individuals in the vast world of The Continent, where humans, elves, witchers, gnomes, and monsters battle to survive and thrive, and where good and evil is not easily identified.”

With that, they shared a trio of clips from the new series which were previously shown stateside at San Diego Comic-Con earlier. This time, fans from south of the equator were treated to the fun which showcased Cavill’s sword-fighting skills, battling guards in a castle (by the way, he performs all his stunts). The second clip featured the young princess Ciri (Freya Allen) who is lost in a forest and has a tense encounter with a threatening group of dryads. The final clip was more dramatic and emotional look at the all-powerful sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra).

When asked what he is most excited about from The Witcher, Cavill simply said: “I’m just happy for everyone to see it — we’ve worked so incredibly hard on it.”

And right before they said goodbye, they shared the new, final trailer which received a standing ovation. The action-packed trailer gave another look at Geralt and all the players, it didn’t show much that already hasn’t been shown but it certainly added hype to the fantasy series.

“The thing we want is for you to be entertained,” said Hissrich as to what she hopes audiences gain from the show. “I hope people learn to have the tiniest bit of empathy for those not in your shoes. It sounds cheesy but that’s what we want. The world is big enough for all of us.”

Hissrich serves as executive producer and showrunner. Tomek Baginski, Jason F. Brown, Sean Daniel, Mike Ostrowski, Steve Gaub and Jarosław Sawko are also executive producers. The first season of The Witcher will debut December 20. Netflix renewed the fantasy series ahead of its premiere for a second season and is slated to debut 2021.

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