The Witcher's video game voice star weighs in on Netflix adaptation
"I don't know why they made those choices."
Doug Cockle, the gravelly voice of Geralt in CD Projekt Red's Witcher video games, has shared his thoughts on the Netflix series.
Speaking with YouTube channel Behind the Voice, Cockle said there were some "choices" made in the writers room for the Netflix adaptation he didn't understand, but appreciated "we have to give different mediums their space".
The actor noted the show is a "different medium from the games", which themselves are a different medium from the books, comics and other Witcher-related media. The show's "gotta have room to be its own thing", Cockle said.
That being said, the Geralt actor stated he would still like to chat with the Netflix writers for more clarity on their decisions for the show.
"I don't know why they made those choices and I'd love to have a chat with some of the writers about why those choices were made just so I can intellectually understand why," he shared, before comparing The Witcher to HBO's The Last of Us adaptation.
"If you look at something like The Last of Us... [the show] followed the game narrative pretty closely, with some minor alterations. And, it worked wonderfully and fans of the games loved it and that's all good," Cockle said. "The Netflix Witcher series, they had not only the books, but they also had the games, which slightly reinterpreted the books a little bit as well, and they also had the comic books, which again reinterpreted a little bit for the medium... So, You gotta give [the show] some room to grow, to be who they wanna be."
Cockle said he enjoyed the first season of Netflix's Witcher series, although subsequent seasons "started to go down paths [he] didn't fully understand".
"I didn't lose interest... but I started going 'I need to restructure how I'm thinking about this show', because it's not doing what I expected it to do and I'm disliking that and perhaps I shouldn't... I should watch it and judge it on its own merits and leave the games and books over to the side." He admitted this could sometimes be hard, especially for those who love a universe as rich as the Witcher's.
Netflix's Witcher adaptation has been somewhat divisive among fans, but regardless, a fourth series is currently in the works. This will see the debut of Liam Hemsworth's Geralt of Rivia, after Superman star Henry Cavill (pictured above) called it a day on his time as the series' monster-hunter in 2022.
In addition to Hemsworth, Matrix star Laurence Fishburne is also joining The Witcher's cast for the fourth season as Regis. Danny Woodburn, meanwhile, has been announced as Geralt's dwarf friend Zoltan Chivay.
As for Cockle, he is set to reprise his role as Geralt in Netflix's upcoming Witcher animation, Sirens of the Deep.