Earlier this year, Jodie Turner-Smith was cast in the role of the "elite warrior" Éile in the upcoming Netflix series The Witcher: Blood Origin, a prequel to the streamer's hit show The Witcher. It was announced soon after that Turner-Smith had to leave the project due to scheduling issues, and we're still waiting to hear who's going to replace her in the role of Éile. In the meantime, the great Michelle Yeoh has been cast as a "sword-elf" character named Scían.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Scían is
the very last of her nomadic tribe of sword-elves. No one can come close to her artistry with the blade, and no one carries as much loss within their heart. When a chance presents itself to retrieve a stolen sacred sword, taken from her fallen tribe by nefarious means, she launches herself into a deadly quest that will change the outcome of the Continent.
Set in "an elven world" 1,200 years before the events we saw in the first season of The Witcher, The Witcher: Blood Origin is a six-part series that will tell
a story lost to time – 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.
Laurence O'Fuarain is playing the lead role of Fjall. Here's the description of that character:
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.
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 involved as creative consultant.
Yeoh's credits include Yes, Madam!; Supercop; Tomorrow Never Dies; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2; Crazy Rich Asians; Star Trek: Discovery; Boss Level; and many more.