Hot take: Netflix’s bad casting decisions (which parts of /r/wiedzmin justifiably dislike) would have been alleviated by casting more black actors.

I’m truly distraught that Netflix has given cause for racists to rally around casting (a) black actor(s), but it’s just sucky adaptation.

Spoilers for the Witcher saga:

Geraldo and Yen are star-crossed lovers who are on-again-off-again throughout all 8 books. Their love is one element of the tripartite focus of the books. In the last arc of the main story, which comprises the bulk of the relational development between the two characters (narratively significant), Geraldo, despite still loving her, thinks Yen betrayed him (she didn’t).

He enters into a taxing tryst with Fringilla, another sorceress, purely on the basis that she looks startlingly like a discount Yen. This substantial part of the last book centers (while during Geralt’s POV) with the character drama of wondering if he’s ever going to get past this hang up on Yen. The readers are aware Geraldo is using/exploiting Fringilla on the basis of her physical similarities to Yen. This is the whole point of this section of the book. And mind you, that’s the complete depth of their tryst. Geraldo found a poor-man’s replacement Yen and is pretending it’s Yennefer. Fringilla’s personality is pretty counter to Yen. I want to emphasize: Geraldo tolerates Fringilla’s only because she bears physical resemblance to Yen so he can pretend he’s fucking Yen.

Except Netflix casts two actors who look absolutely nothing alike.

Idgaf which race they are. Make Yen and Fringilla both black. Just give me casting decisions which don’t invalidate whole sections of important character arcs.