Netflix’s The Witcher Doesn’t Have a Villain

Geralt of Rivia goes up against many different foes in The Witcher series, both in the books and in the games, many of them supernatural and others just humans with ill intentions. Netflix‘s The Witcher will feature all sorts of characters that fans are already familiar with, and while some of those will probably be a few people who Geralt is known to be at odds with, the series won’t really have one main villain to look out for.

The Witcher showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich spoke about the show and the lack of a villain during an interview with Entertainment Weekly. It’s already been said several times before that the series will take inspiration from the books as opposed to the games, and Hissrich said the Netflix series will explore “all shades of grey” found in the books.

“It’s not a secretive aspect. There isn’t really a villain,” Hissrich said when asked if there would be an outright villain or if those details were being kept secret. “One of the things we’re enjoying exploring is all the shades of grey in the books.”

The way that viewers feel about different characters throughout the series may also change so that the ones you thought you liked will be replaced by others, Hissrich teased.

“The characters you’re rooting for in the beginning may not be the characters you’re rooting for in the end,” Hissrich said. “And characters you hate and seem absolutely evil are motivated by something that’s really relatable and human and emotional. I found writing it and then watching it afterward that your allegiance switches a lot. You constantly try to put yourself in the shoes of characters and think what would you do [in a situation]. I think you’ll end up having a lot of empathy for characters you didn’t expect to.”

Hissrich also addressed comparison to Game of Thrones during the interview, particularly when it comes to the violence and other content which might net the show a certain rating. The showrunner described The Witcher as “a very adult show” and said that any graphic content which may be found within will serve a purpose by moving the story forward and won’t just be there for shock value.