A recent report indicated that a fan-favorite character was going to be recast in the upcoming fourth season of The Witcher, which is currently filming. This character was Geralt’s longtime friend and mentor Vesemir, played by Kim Bodnia in the Netflix series, but it was unclear why the role was being recast. The revamp has now been confirmed to RadioTimes by a Bodnia spokesperson, revealing that it was a conflict in Bodnia’s schedule that prompted the change. The spokesperson said: “Kim will not return as Vesemir as her current filming schedule did not align with Netflix’s filming schedule for season 4 of The Witcher.”

It’s unfortunate that fans won’t get to see Bodnia continue in the role of Vesemir, but the good news is that fans will get to see Bodnia in another project. The project that clashed with the schedule was the Apple TV+ original film F1, directed by Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) and starring Brad Pitt as a retired F1 driver who returns to the action to take on the biggest stars in sport.

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Bodnia stars as Kaspar in the film, joining a cast including Pitt, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem, Tobias Menzies and Sarah Niles. Filming both projects wasn’t originally going to be a problem since they were scheduled to film at different times. This timeline was thrown into disarray, however, after the Writers Guild of America and Screen Actors Guild strikes, and the film was already on a tight timeline.

This is because the film had to shoot during the real F1 Grand Prix weekends in order to be able to include this footage in the races in the film. The Witcher is also on an accelerated schedule, as it is currently filming season 4 and will film season 5 after a four-month hiatus. Now the role will have to be recast, but that has nothing to do with Bodnia’s excellent portrayal of the character in previous seasons.

It’s unclear who will take on this role in Season 4 and Season 5, but we’ll keep you updated as we learn more. With the season currently filming, there’s a good chance we’ll find out relatively soon who will end up playing the role in the future, and it will be interesting to see who Netflix gets to play opposite the new Geralt Liam Hemsworth.

This is especially important thanks to the close bond between Geralt and Vesemir in the games, books, and now the series. The two share a lot of history, and Vesemir is particularly important to The School of the Wolf and Geralt’s early years as a witcher. Vesemir was present during the construction of Kaer Morhen and saw the school in its heyday and during its final days as a thriving witcher’s fortress.

Kaer Morhen was attacked by an angry mob who had turned against the Witchers who had once protected it, and although the mob significantly damaged the fortress, the attack and the resulting high death toll also removed the ability to create new Witchers. Vesemir took a young Geralt under his wing, which was part of the story told in The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf.

Who would you like to see play the role of Vesemir in The Witcher? You can talk all things Witcher with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!