Netflix 'The Witcher': Joey Batey praises Liam Hemsworth for 'diving headfirst' in the show

Joey Batey, who portrays the bard named Jaskier on Netflix's The Witcher, commended Liam Hemsworth’s bravery for taking on the show at such a crucial point.

Earlier this year, Henry Cavill, who portrays the titular superhuman, announced that he would be exiting the Netflix series after appearing in three seasons and Hemsworth will be taking his place from Season 4 onwards.

In a new interview published by Culture Crave on December 1st, 2022, as part of The Witcher: Blood Origin press junket, Batey was originally asked if he reached out to Henry Cavill after his departure from the show was announced.

To which he responded, “I spoke to both [Cavill and Liam Hemsworth] of them, actually.” While he detailed that he was going to miss his costar, he also added that he made a point to welcome the youngest Hemsworth.

“I reached out to him and said ‘Welcome’,” he said.

“The strength in him and the bravery to come and join a show like this, like halfway through is unbelievable and I hope that everyone know[s] the commitment that he’s already showing to these incredibly big boots he has to fill,” he continued.

“He’s diving headfirst into this and taking it so seriously with his research and training and things like that. We’ll miss Henry an awful lot, but Liam’s gonna bring something new and fresh and different to it.”

Based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s best-selling book series, the show follows Geralt as he travels the Continent fighting anything and everything that goes bump in the night, from ghouls to bruxas and more.

In November 2022, Liam’s older brother, Chris Hemsworth tweeted out assuring fans that his little bro was hard at work for his upcoming role.

“Don't worry Liam's been a loyal @CentrFit member for years and is hitting the books hard on this one. Congrats again on the role, @LiamHemsworth,” he wrote.