Laurence O'Fuarain of Vikings and Game of Thrones has signed on to join the previously announced Jodie Turner-Smith (Nightflyers, Queen & Slim) in the cast of the Netflix series The Witcher: Blood Origin, a prequel set 1,200 years before the events of The Witcher.
The six-part series will tell the story of
the creation of the first prototype Witcher, and the events that lead to the pivotal ‘conjunction of the spheres’, when the worlds of monsters, men, and elves merged to become one.
O'Fuarain is taking on the role of Fjall. "Born into a clan of warriors sworn to protect a King, Fjall carries a deep scar within, the death of a loved one who fell in battle trying to save him. A scar that won't let him settle, or make peace with himself or the world around him. In his quest for redemption, Fjall will find himself fighting beside the most unlikely of allies as he carves a path of vengeance across a continent in turmoil."
Turner-Smith's character is Éile, "an elite warrior blessed with the voice of a goddess, who has left her clan and position as Queen's guardian to follow her heart as a nomadic musician."
Lauren Schmidt Hissrich and showrunner Declan de Barra serve as executive producers on The Witcher: Blood Origin, alongside Hivemind's Jason Brown and Sean Daniel, and Tomek Baginski and Jarek Sawko of Platige Films. Andrzej Sapkowski, whose novels inspired the Witcher shows, is on board as creative consultant.
I feel like the other Witcher projects Netflix makes are going to struggle to live up to the adventures of Henry Cavill's Geralt of Rivia on the main show, but I'm open to giving anything Witcher a chance.