Thus far, only one casting decision has been announced for the Netflix Witcher series; that of Henry Cavill being cast as Geralt of Rivia. However, a recent casting ad emerged online which has provoked backlash from certain people online. The ad, which appeared on the website of a UK-based agency, sought a BAME (black, Asian, or minority ethnic) actress for the role of Ciri.
The New Witcher 3 Mod for Ciri
Since the ad surfaced, there was been a sadly predictable backlash against the series. Despite the fact that the writer of the original novels, Andrzej Sapkowski, has said publicly that he supports the inclusion of people with different ethnic backgrounds. Lauren Hissrich, the series’ showrunner, has been clear that the series will be based on the novels, not the CD Projekt Red games. However, there is a vocal minority of people online who vitriolically oppose the casting of non-white actors; there have been numerous backlashes such as this across a wide variety of mediums in recent years.
Lauren Hissrich took a hiatus from Twitter following the discovery of the ad. Although she said that her primary reason for taking a hiatus was to focus on writing, the timing is such that it seems unlikely that the backlash was not a factor. Hissrich has been very vocal online in keeping fans informed. Certainly, she has been far more open than most showrunners. It is actually unclear whether the series is intentionally planning to cast a BAME actress as Ciri; since the emergence of the ad, other ads have seemingly surfaced which do not corroborate it. It remains to be seen who will actually be given the role.
The new mod was released on NexusMods by a modder who goes by “Moon,” and was uploaded by “TotalInsanity”. The mod description is very brief and probably intentionally neutral; it is difficult to tell whether the creator intends it as a way to belittle the casting news, to support it, or has some other reason entirely. It simply states that it is; “A new Ciri texture to make the game more diverse.”