Jodie Turner-Smith To Star In Netflix Prequel Of ‘The Witcher’

Jodie Turner-Smith will take the lead role of The Witcher: Blood Origin, a prequel to the popular fantasy drama series on Netflix, The Witcher. Based on the video game series of the same name, the The Witcher television series was created by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, who is best known for being a writer on popular shows such as The West Wing, Justice, Daredevil, The Defenders and The Umbrella Academy. The Witcher stars Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, a magically enhanced monster hunter who slays creatures for rewards.

The prequel series The Witcher: Blood Origin takes place 1200 years before the time of Geralt of Rivia and shows the start of the Witcher culture. Due to the time period, Cavill will not be attached to this project. Hissrich will serve as an executive producer for the series while Declan de Barra will serve as the showrunner. Turner-Smith will portray Éile, the main protagonist who in the casting description is described as “an elite warrior blessed with the voice of a goddess, has left her clan and position as Queen’s guardian to follow her heart as a nomadic musician. A grand reckoning on the continent forces her to return to the way of the blade in her quest for vengeance and redemption.”

Turner-Smith is best known for appearing as one of the title characters in the film Queen & Slim and in a handful of television shows such as The Last Ship, Nightflyers and Mad Dogs. The Witcher: Blood Origin is the second spin-off to The Witcher that has been announced to be in production. The other spin-off to be announced is an animated film The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, which focuses on Geralt of Rivia’s mentor and fellow Witcher Vesemir (Kim Bodnia).