Henry Cavill spent lockdown playing The Witcher games on hardest difficulty setting

News
By , published

Exclusive: The Geralt actor talks to Total Film about Witcher season 2 – and forgetting how "stressful" the game is

The Witcher season 2 on Netflix
(Image credit: Netflix)

Henry Cavill famously first stepped foot on The Continent by playing The Witcher games rather than reading the books. Playing Geralt in the Witcher Netflix series, though, doesn't exactly buy the actor much free time, but during lockdown, Cavill finally had time to replay the iconic series.

"I decided to put it on the hardest difficulty possible to play, which I’ve done before, and it was really quite stressful! I forgot quite how stressful it was," he tells Total Film in the new issue of the magazine, featuring Scream on the cover. "These days I’m not rich in time and so I haven’t unfortunately had too much of a chance to have a go with the games again."

Also in lockdown, production on The Witcher season 2 restarted with all new safety protocols in place. The series wrapped a few months back and is due to reach Netflix this December. Expect Geralt, the "grumpy snowman", as he is dubbed in the first season, to be slightly more vocal as season 2 opens up. 

"This season, I really wanted to make sure that we represented the book’s Geralt more accurately, and that we saw him speak more," says Cavill. "I pushed really, really hard for that." Does this mean he’s cheery? "I wouldn’t say cheery. He’s still Geralt of Rivia, but he’s definitely coming across as more of an intellectual." He sighs. "It’s a hard life, monster hunting... I wouldn’t recommend it."

That's only the tip of the iceberg from our Witcher coverage from the new issue of the magazine, which also features interviews with other cast members and the showrunner. Make sure you pick up a copy of the new issue of Total Film magazine when it hits shelves (real-world and digital) from Thursday, November 11. Check out the covers below.

Total Film's Scream cover

(Image credit: Paramount/Total Film)

And if you're a fan of Total Film, why not subscribe so that you never miss an issue? You’ll save money on the magazine, you’ll get it before it hits shops, *and* you'll get exclusive, subscriber-only cover like the Scream one below. Don't miss out on another incredible cover that's not available in stores...

Total Film's Scream subscriber cover

(Image credit: Paramount/Total Film)
James Mottram
Freelance writer

James Mottram is a freelance film journalist, author of books that dive deep into films like Die Hard and Tenet, and a regular guest on the Total Film podcast. You'll find his writings on GamesRadar+ and Total Film, and in newspapers and magazines from across the world like The Times, The Independent, The i, Metro, The National, Marie Claire, and MindFood.