Netflix's 'The Witcher' Could Incorporate Geralt's Forgotten Disabilities
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Featured Image Credit: Netflix
Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, showrunner for Netflix's The Witcher, has responded positively to discussions of Geralt of Rivia's disability, and promises to "add this layer to [the] hero."
The adaptation released to an incredible reception, knocking Disney's The Mandalorian from its throne to become the most in-demand TV series in the world across all platforms. Moreover, Netflix announced that the first season had been viewed by over 76 million viewers within its first month of release, making it the largest launch for a new Netflix series... ever. It helps that The Witcher is very good, too, with hefty helpings of gore and gnarly monsters as well as interesting minor plots that waft and wave in between the major happenings of Geralt and the gang.
A second season was greenlit even before the first season had smashed these records, and showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich is raring to return to The Continent and its colourful characters. The Witcher was praised for its representation of race and ethnicity in a fantasy, as the genre is often white-washed in the interest of "historical accuracy." We know that this excuse doesn't hang together, given that a fantasy world is a fictional world, and though it may be inspired by certain areas at certain times, there's no reason not to diversify its ensembles.
Geralt of Rivia & the Importance of Disabled Protagonists
A Thread.
Geralt of Rivia is disabled.
That statement always surprises people, even fans of the series. But it's true. It's just that people only remember how Geralt is shown in- 1/20 pic.twitter.com/7RlFtiK0ol
- the dislocating GM Making DnD Better :wheelchair: (@mustangsart) November 9, 2020
However, it is disability that has come to the fore of the discussions surrounding The Witcher, and more specifically, its titular hero. This information has been shared through Twitter by Sara, a disability consultant for tabletop role-playing games and an avid reader of the books. They cite the injuries that Geralt of Rivia sustains in a fight between him and the mage Vilgefortz in Time of Contempt, which "shatters his elbow and his thighbone and leaves him screaming in agony and delirious." He is healed through the magical Waters of Brokilon, but it isn't enough to remove the effects of his new disability.
Geralt suffers with severe pain in his sword arm, and his knee and his hip on the side that was destroyed. He will also occasionally walk with a limp, cannot ride Roach for long periods of time, and doesn't like to sit down for fear that his knee will seize. Most critically, he struggles with the Wolf School style of combat, which is what he trained in as a young Witcher, because this focuses heavily on acrobatic movements and flexibility. If he lived in our world, Geralt would be diagnosed with chronic pain from nerve damage and osteoarthritis, said Sara.
"It's so very important that media normalises disabled heroes/protagonists and stops erasing the disabilities of those who were already established as being disabled. It's damaging," they explained. "There are disabled people out there who, like me, need someone like Geralt of Rivia to relate to, to remind them that their experiences are valued and that they aren't going through them alone."
Serendipitously, the thread caught the attention of Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, and she stated that she was "wrong" to gloss over Geralt's disability in her own reading. "I haven't stopped thinking about this," said Schmidt. "I'm excited to dig into this more. To add this layer to our hero."
As someone who loves the show and is also a chronic pain sufferer... thank you for being willing to do so instead of going "he's a Witcher he has inhuman pain tolerance". Chronic pain sufferers do have inhuman pain tolerance, but we still hurt. I'm even more excited now.
- Queen of Thorns ⚔️ (@_CommanderZoya) November 10, 2020
In the replies to this tweet, fans celebrated this recognition. "As someone who loves the show and is also a chronic pain sufferer... thank you for being willing to do so instead of going 'he's a Witcher he has inhuman pain tolerance [sic]'" said Twitter user @_CommanderZoya. "Chronic pain sufferers do have inhuman pain tolerance, but we still hurt. I'm even more excited now."
Recently, it was announced that production has stopped once again on Netflix's The Witcher, owing to a number of positive coronavirus cases on set. As per the standard procedure for any incidence of the virus in the workplace, Netflix is requiring that everyone on the team is tested to be certain of their health and safety. Once it is confirmed that the team is out of the woods, then filming will resume. The Witcher is slated to return to the small screen in 2021, but these delays might have pushed it out of this window.
Topics: News, The Witcher, Netflix
