The Witcher's Anya Chalotra Thought The First Day Of Filming Would Be Her Last
This post contains slight spoilers for "The Witcher."
Bringing Yennefer of Yengerberg to life on the screen is no small task. Integral to Andrzej Sapkowski's "The Witcher" novel series, Yen is a key presence in the lives of Geralt and Ciri, as she aids them through their journey at several points. Just like the Netflix series, the books paint Yen as a powerful, no-nonsense sorceress who eventually acts like a mother to Ciri and helps Geralt out of several unsavory situations. As one can imagine, franchise expectations surrounding Yen were pretty high when Anya Chalotra was cast for the role in the series, especially after some pockets of the fandom had a preconceived idea of Yen based on the video games.
While the Netflix series makes certain changes to her character — show Yen is much more amicable and emotionally open from the get-go — the core of her character is slowly edging towards someone who is ready to go to the ends of the earth to protect the ones they love. Sure, there are some out-of-character plotlines, such as Yen attempting to sacrifice Ciri (Freya Allan) in exchange for motherhood, but this controversial choice has been effectively used to introduce nuances in her character so far. Chalotra, who was fresh out of drama school when she was cast for the role, told The Telegraph about the anxieties she had about embodying such a powerful character, and her experiences on the first day of filming.
Given how the series has expanded the novels' premise in sheer size and scale, while introducing a wide cast of characters that have unique quirks and backstories, it is not surprising that Chalotra felt intimated when she first became part of this ambitious project. Here's what she had to say.
A nerve-wracking experience
In her Telegraph interview, Chalotra explained that she was not too well-versed with the source material (at least to the point that her co-star Henry Cavill was, who's an ardent fan of the franchise) and the stress of showing up to such a big-budget production was stress-inducing for her. Chalotra talked about how she believed she "didn't think [she] was going to get through the first day of filming:
"All I've ever known was theatre. I haven't worked with a black box in front of my face, despite having come out of drama school and calling myself an actor. My mind was all over the place. I couldn't understand this way of working. I had to figure out what my process was quite quickly."
Thanks to her friend, and "Heartbeat and Virtues" actor Niamh Cusack's advice to play the scene and embrace the moment without worrying about being perceived, Chalotra was able to overcome the anxiety she mentions above. The actor also went on to talk about how one of the character's strengths is her beauty, which plays directly into her journey ahead, and how she did not "think [she] was right for this part." However, Chalotra was able to bring her unique vision to the role — one only has to view Yen's incredible character arc in the last two seasons — playing the sorceress with a brand of vulnerability that was both fierce and moving.
As it turns out, Chalotra's misgivings were in vain, as Yennefer feels incredibly organic to "The Witcher," as her story influences those around her in ways that feel authentic, just like in the books. While beauty is Yennefer's greatest strength, Chalotra also imbues her with guts and a complex heart, which helped elevate the character in relevant, meaningful ways.