The internet has become a place where any imagined idea can become reality and this is certainly the case for the latest clip spreading across social media.
A hilarious video is making its rounds showing Liam Hemsworth’s face replacing Henry Cavill’s in a deep fake of The Witcher. Check it out:
Deepfakes have been circling around the internet for a while now and have since been dubbed as the 21st-century’s answer to Photoshop.
The synthetic media works by replacing an existing image, like a person’s face, with some else’s likeness.
First hitting our screens in 2019, Cavill played the leading protagonist role of Geralt of Rivia for the first three seasons yet it has been confirmed he will not star as the mutated monster-hunter for further episodes.
Explaining the news to fans, Cavill posted to Instagram: “My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures, and alas, I will be laying down my medallion and my swords for Season 4.”
It has since been revealed that Hemsworth will be replacing Cavill in the Netflix original fantasy drama series.
Cavill’s post outlined this, continuing: “In my stead, the fantastic Mr Liam Hemsworth will be taking up the mantle of the White Wolf.”
Hemsworth also took to the social media platform to share with The Witcher fans just how ‘honoured’ he was to portray the iconic character.
He posted: “Henry Cavill has been an incredible Geralt, and I’m honoured that he’s handing me the reins and allowing me to take up the White Wolf’s blades for the next chapter of his adventure.”
The news came as a total shock to viewers yet, now, with a little help from modern technology, fans can have a sneak peak at what Geralt would look and sound like as the Aussie star.
Heads up – it’s hilarious.
Offering fans a ‘first look’ into what the upcoming season could be like, the deepfake shows side-by-side clips of original scenes from The Witcher compared to the artificially-edited ones and Hemsworth looks… different.
Due to the editing process, some finer details of Hemsworth’s likeness have clearly been missed out leading the actor to appear vacant-looking at times.
Hopefully the official film footage will look a lot better than the deepfake fan-made video.
Uploaded to YouTube just over a week ago, the video has since amassed over half a million views and left hundreds eager to share their reactions.
The majority of people voiced their loyalty to Cavill playing the role of Geralt.
One YouTube user commented about Hemsworth: “He looks good in the role but the voice, the mannerisms, the style will all be so different. Henry will always be Geralt to me.”
“I’ll definitely never watch this without Henry,” another loyal Cavill fan added.
A third echoed: “Nobody can replace him. Henry Cavill is the face of Gerald of Rivia always.”
Others even called out Netflix for the switch in actors: “Henry Cavill as Geralt will never be truly replaced, Netflix really screwed up.”
A few, however, saw the humour in the deepfake with one person admitting: “I’m sorry but this is too funny!!!”
“Hell no,” another wrote with laughing emojis, “absolutely not.”
Regardless, it’s fair to say that the deepfake definitely didn’t do Hemsworth any favours.
The fourth season of The Witcher is set to be released some point in late 2024.
