The Witcher has proven to be one of the most popular series to ring in the new year, which shouldn’t surprise any fans who were eagerly anticipating its premier just before Christmas. Fan theories were tossed around for months leading up to the first trailer, which saw Henry Cavill starring as the titular witcher, a famous warrior slaying monsters in a medieval fantasy realm.
For those that had played the video games by CD Prokect Red and read the novels by Andrsej Sapkowski, the theories about the series’ premise concerning the fate of Geralt of Rivia, the sorceress Yennefer, and the princess Ciri were all relatively logical. But Netflix hoped to engage peripheral viewers that didn’t know anything about the Witcherverse. As viewers streamed the eight-part series, the theories got more convoluted, but now that Season 2 has been announced, we’re sure to expect many more. Here are the 10 worst fan theories that we’re glad got debunked on The Witcher, now streaming on Netflix.
JASKIER WAS A DOPPELGANGER
We meet Jaskier early on in the series, after Geralt has already secured the sobriquet “The Butcher of Blaviken”. Jaskier proceeds to become his MC after a fashion, announcing his presence, talking up his exploits, and building up his reputation, all with a merry tune.
They part ways until Episode 5, where Jaskier hints that it’s been ten years since they’ve last seen each other. We know why Geralt hasn’t aged (the witcher trials gave him mutant genes that slow the process), and we know why Yennefer doesn’t age (her ritual), so the fact that Jaskier doesn’t appear to age meant that some fans decided he was a doppelganger secretly out to gain Geralt’s confidence and then assassinate him. Apparently they missed the line where Yen mentions his “crow’s feet”.
GERALT WOULD BE THE SUPERMAN OF THE CONTINENT
When you really think about it, Geralt and Superman have a lot in common besides both being played by Henry Cavill. Both occupy a strange space in their respective worlds, protecting humans from monsters all the while being regarded as a monster themselves. They’re both extremely strong, have powerful regenerative abilities, and could ostensibly live forever.
That being said, no one really wanted to see Geralt be the Superman of the Continent. It would mean he won every fight without opposition, and always conveniently “saved the day”. The fact that he can still get his ass handed to him by a horde of nekkers makes him a little more relatable and interesting to watch.
IT WOULD COPY GAME OF THRONES
Other than featuring dragons, magic, and a medieval setting, there isn’t much about The Witcher that steals directly from Game of Thrones. It has its own complex story, involving prophecies and providence rather than cloak and dagger political intrigue (although Queen Calanthe does come across like Cersei-Lite at times).
The nature of the format, which at times feels very episodic, means that you can enjoy Geralt and Jaskier going on adventures and slaying monsters, as well as get caught up in the throughline plot of Geralt meeting up with Ciri to appease destiny.
CAHIR WOULD BE THE KYLO REN OF THE SERIES
When The Witcher trailers dropped, a lot of fuss was made about the knight in the black armor with the winged helmet. His name is revealed to be Cahir, and he leads the Nilfgaardian army under orders from the Emperor. Fans of the games know him to be an accomplished soldier who eventually fights to rescue Ciri after he fails to hunt her down.
Some viewers joked he was the “Kylo Ren” of the series , a villain prone to pouting and throwing tantrums until he makes a strong connection with a young girl who has magical abilities. The theory was further given credence when Ciri was made to appear a little older than she was in the books/games, prompting the possibility of a bond like Ren and Rey’s in Star Wars.
THE WITCHER WOULD BE XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS
Luckily, The Witcher boasted just enough camp to not take itself as seriously as Game of Thrones, but enough so that it didn’t completely devolve into a tacky mess. It embraced the corny aspects of fantasy television without sacrificing its dignity.
YENNEFER WAS A WITCHER
For those who hadn’t either read the books or played the games, there might have been some confusion about Yennefer’s identity based on the trailers, especially since they showed both her performing magic and Geralt using Signs. Many viewers, before understanding the difference in magic users in the series, thought that she (like Geralt) was a witcher.
Witchers were few and far between by the time Geralt of Rivia began his training, and as it turns out, most die by a monster’s hand before they reach old age. Yennefer is basically ageless like Geralt, but because she’s a powerful sorceress, not a witcher.
THERE WOULD BE A LOVE TRIANGLE WITH YEN AND TRISS
In the video game series, there are two main women in Geralt’s romantic life; Yennefer and Triss. If you finish the games (up to Witcher 3: Wild Hunt), you’ll have decided who he spends most of his time with depending on if you’re Team Yen or Team Triss.
In the book series, Triss featured much less prominently, but that didn’t stop fans from deciding that The Witcher was going to be all about Geralt juggling Triss and Yen in the middle of a saucy love-triangle. In reality, the series proved that if there was going to be any love triangle happening, it was going to be between Geralt, Yen, and Jaskier.
GERALT WAS SOME SORT OF DEMON
You’d have to play The Witcher games to know that before battle, witchers knock back several potions to gain stamina for exhausting bouts with a monster. The more potions they drink, the more they poison their body, walking a fine line between life and death to boost the mutagens already found in their bodies.
However, if all you did was focus on Geralt looking creepy with black eyes, you might have thought that he was some sort of demon, and that witchers were half-men, half-monsters. The truth is, they sort of are, thanks to the Trial of the Grasses and the perils of their witcher training, but not to that extent.
YENNEFER USED MAGIC TO MAKE HERSELF BEAUTIFUL
While Yennefer is a powerful sorceress, she doesn’t use a perpetual glamour to make herself look beautiful like the Red Woman in Game of Thrones. Some confusion arose due to the magical nature of the ritual she underwent in Aretuza, but the fact remains that it was akin to her getting plastic surgery.
Often girls considered too ugly to be able to marry were sold by their families to witches who would train them in magic. If they proved adept and successful, they would undergo rituals that would make them look appealing so that they could represent the order in royal courts around the Continent.
GERALT AND CIRI WERE DESTINED TO MARRY
When word got out that they were changing Ciri’s age for the Netflix series, some fans wondered if this was because her character was going to be altered into a love interest for Geralt. In the books and in the games, she’s his adopted daughter, but Geralt is a silver fox who ages very slowly, so it was always possible Ciri was going to have a different backstory.
However, once the series debuted, it was clear that Geralt was still significantly older than Ciri, and the narrative of him adopting her was put into effect halfway through the series. The only reason Ciri was made a little older was because of the legalities of shooting nights with minors.
