One Season 3 Monster In The Witcher Deeply Disturbed Some Of The Cast Off-Screen
This post contains spoilers for Netflix's "The Witcher."
"The Witcher" might be undergoing some major changes with its third season, but you didn't think the show would be without some deranged eldritch beasts, did you? Netflix's Henry Cavill-led fantasy drama is bidding adieu to its star, who'll soon be replaced by Liam Hemsworth in the role of Geralt of Rivia in season 4. Meanwhile, Ciri (Freya Allan) will face her biggest choice yet as part of season 3, volume 2, in an event that's sure to fundamentally change the child of Elder Blood going forward. In fact, Ciri will be the main character in "The Witcher" after season 3, according to executive producers Steve Gaub and Tomek Baginsk.
With all these changes going on, you might expect the writers to be focused more on story and setting up season 4, but this is still "The Witcher," and you can't have "The Witcher" without some good old-fashioned monster hunting. Thus far we've seen several abominations, from Ciri and Geralt's brief encounter with the Jackapace early in the season, to the sea monster the Aeschna, which the duo also dispatched in order to secure safe crossing back to Aretuza.
But those examples pale in comparison to one particular beast. This ungodly creature is so twisted in its inception and execution that it arguably stands as the most disturbing monster "The Witcher" has ever produced. So unsettling is this particular creation that it even seems to have the cast of the show shook.
'Quite a thing to see'
Through three seasons of "The Witcher," we've been introduced to all manner of monster, some of which have come complete with disturbing backstories. Season 1 featured the cursed offspring of an incestual relationship known as The Striga, which fought Geralt with a still-attached umbilical cord. But even that doesn't hold a candle to the perverse monstrosity that reveals itself in the latest season.
"The Witcher" season 3 introduces the most tragic and terrifying monster yet in the form of a flesh monster that crawls from the depths of an abandoned castle in episode 2, "Unbound." This particular beast isn't your average Kikimora, with a form made up of the mutilated and dismembered bodies of young girls stolen from Aretuza. As if that wasn't bad enough, the girls' seemingly still-cognizant heads protrude from the walls of the castle dungeon, begging Geralt not to kill the monster as they somehow feel every slice of the White Wolf's blade.
As you might expect, not everyone on the show was all that delighted by such an atrocity. Ciri and Yennefer stars Freya Allan and Anya Chalotra spoke to Dexerto about the flesh monster, with Allan revealing that it "did actually disturb [her]." Chalotra, meanwhile, added, "Yeah that's very disturbing [...] I'm more disturbed at how, where that came from: the mind, you know, that's quite a thing to see."
More than just shock value
"The Witcher" season 3 has been a mostly-satisfying return to original author Andrzej Sapkowski's world, and while the show has a lot of reorganizing to do, it still managed to keep the monster hunting as a crucial element. You might even say the writers outdid themselves with the flesh monster, which somehow combines all of humanity's deepest fears into one inhuman beast while furthering the central narrative. Geralt's pursuit of the Rogue Mage leads him to the castle dungeon where he encounters the monster, which in turn hints at the brutality and sadism of the Mage, thereby heightening anticipation for the season's inevitable climax.
What's more, the monster may have been a deeply unsettling addition to the show, but it did more than disturb the cast members. Creating such a startling creature actually led to some of the most collaborative work "The Witcher" has yet seen behind the scenes. As production designer Andrew Laws told Mashable:
"It was an extraordinarily collaborative effort between many, many different departments because it was such an abstract idea. It was very different in terms of how that manifests itself in the end. It was probably one of the most collaborative processes in the monster-building world."
With that in mind, there's no doubt season 3 of "The Witcher" proves the show is still at the top of its game, monster-wise. If it had also managed to give Henry Cavill's Geralt the farewell he deserves, it might have been the best season yet.