The Witcher: Blood Origin, the brand-new spin-off based on the wider Witcher books and serving as a prequel to the mainline series, has managed to earn the worst Rotten Tomatoes score ever. Yikes.
Launching on Christmas Day, the new mini-series takes place more than a thousand years before the Netflix show, the games and original books.
The expanded lore of the popular dark and gory fantasy world is vast and fiendishly studied by die-hards, so a show diving into that should be a no-brainer, right?
Well, sadly, through a combination of seemingly genuine bad reviews and people simply being outraged that the main Witcher series no longer features its star, it looks like the new show is being heavily review-bombed.
Despite being currently sat at 33% and 10%, its audience score dropped at low as 8%. (Credit: Rotten Tomatoes)
In case you were unaware of some of the latest blockbuster shenanigans happening in Hollywood over the last few weeks, Geralt of Rivia himself, Henry Cavill, recently stepped away from the show to reportedly prioritise on training for his return as Superman.
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However, shortly after, it was announced by new DC Studios chairmen James Gunn and Peter Safran that they were dropping the 39-year-old actor as they hoped to pursue a new star to take on the role — you know, the same one he’d just stepped away from his reported £350,000-an-episode deal to focus on.
Yes, we know he’s a millionaire, but die-hard Henry stans obviously felt terrible for him, leaving one dream job for another beloved franchise that essentially helped put both himself and modern DC movies on the map, only to find out that he was no longer needed.
Furthermore, fans are now speculating that Cavill quit The Witcher after two highly-successful and well-paying seasons following disputes with the showrunners. A relative on-set expert as a genuine lover of the books and the games, Cavill is said to have struggled to “see eye to eye with the producers”.
Speaking to Hollywood Reporter, the Man of Steel and Mission: Impossible – Fallout star said “the toughest part for me was finding that balance between the showrunners’ vision and my love for the books”, even going on to add that “some of the writers were not [interested] or actively disliked the books and games, even actively mocking the source material.”
If this is to be believed then it’s no wonder that showrunner Lauren Schmidt-Hissrich, who is also overseeing the Blood Origin spin-off, seems to have annoyed not onlythosewho love Henry Cavill but now Witcher fans in general.
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While plenty of the Rotten Tomatoes reviews limit themselves to calling out those involved in the production for their ‘incompetence’ and ‘lack of respect’, the online consensus beyond the popular review aggregator seems to be that the writing simply isn’t up to snuff.
i wanted to at least give it a shot and i just… i know i've seen worse shows in my life but i can't think of many right now that are worse
The CGI looks hideous & cheap. Writing & dialogue is a mess. Acting isn't very good with Michelle Yeoh's talents wasted. The story is rushed into four hours. Netflix completely changed the origin of The Witchers.
This show is yet another slap in the face to longtime fans.
2022 really has been a race to the bottom when it comes to entertainment, especially the fantasy genre. First Rings of Power, then Willow, now Witcher: Blood Origin – each of them more terrible than the last.
As always, it’s worth watching and forming your own opinion before letting other people’s takes colour your own impressions but it’s fair to say it isn’t looking good for the future of the franchise’s TV adaptations.
Whether the negativity is being largely driven by review-bombing by the Henry Cavill faithful or not, it looks unlikely that there’ll be a resolution as Liam Hemsworth has already been named as the replacement for the main character, Geralt.
Moreover, since Cavill left/was dropped from both projects, he is once again being tipped to play an equally iconic pop culture protagonist in particular. Have a guess…
Sir David Jason set for TV return in Only Fools and Horses documentary Christmas special
Danny Jones
In a surprise bit of festive news, the only and only Sir David Jason is returning for an Only Fools and Horses Christmas special this December. Lovely jubbly!
The best-loved and most-watched British comedy of all time will be back on our screens in documentary form this festive season, with Del Boy himself David Jason revisiting the iconic comedy character after 20 years he last played him on screen.
While the legendary sitcom was broadcast on BBC back in the day, the highly-anticipated Only Fools doc will be airing on Channel 5 right before Christmas as a special one-off programme.
Looking back on the show’s incredible run on UK screens over seven series and the several ‘Christmas Cracker’ specials, specifically, the latest Only Fools and Horses documentary will see Jason and a number of other guests appearing to chat about the legendary show.
The release date of the Only Fools special Christmas documentary is yet to be announced.
While it’s still unclear how many of the original cast will be appearing, Jason’s on-screen wife Tessa Peake-Jones (Raquel) is confirmed to be appearing along with other special guests including newscaster Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Bendiorm‘s Sherrie Hewson.
Sadly, a full theatrical reunion just isn’t on the cards following the deaths of Roger Lloyd Pack (Trigger), Kenneth MacDonald (Mike the Landlord) and Buster Merryfield (Uncle Albert) in the 30 years since the show ended its run.
Only Fools writer John Sullivan also sadly passed away aged 64 in 2011 and fellow co-star Nicholas Lyndhurst, a.k.a. Rodney Trotter, told Metro: “We can’t. John is no longer with us. John was the driving force of the show and we have also lost quite a few cast members now.
“I don’t think I could do it without them and I certainly couldn’t do it without John. At the risk of depressing everyone, I think the last two times I’ve seen David has been at funerals.”
Simply entitled, ‘The Story Of Only Fools And Horses At Christmas’, the 90-minute special is yet to have its broadcast date fully confirmed but you best keep your eyes peeled on the TV guide — we’ll let you know as soon we do.
Jason, 81, has only just recovered from hip surgery earlier this year, so it’ll be nice to see his familiar grin back on our screens.
Right, we’re off to binge a whole series on UK Gold.
The rumoured celebrity guest list at Chanel’s Manchester fashion show as first famous face arrives
Daisy Jackson
When a name as big as Chanel comes to Manchester, you can surely expect at least a few celebrity guests to come with it.
And sure enough, on the even of the Metiers D’Art fashion show, we’ve clocked our first A-lister in our hometown.
Actor Kristen Stewart has been spotted leaving The Stock Exchange Hotel, Gary Neville’s five-star establishment that also hosted Post Malone earlier this year.
The city’s luxury hotels have reportedly all been booked out for Chanel’s prestigious, invite-only fashion show, which will be taking over the Northern Quarter on Thursday 7 December.
So exactly who else is rumoured to be touching down in the city for the show?
The biggest name drop so far is Margot Robbie, Australian actress and star of this summer’s runaway box office hit Barbie.
Margot has famously been one of Chanel’s most recognisable ambassadors.
The brand’s other famous faces include fellow actor Timothee Chalamet, who is the ambassador for Bleu De Chanel, and also tipped to be visiting Manchester this week.
There are currently huge billboards plastered with his face all over the city centre.
Margot Robbie is a big name rumoured to attend the Manchester Chanel show. Credit: Wikiedia CommondsDavid and Victoria Beckham are rumoured to attend the Manchester Chanel show. Credit: InstagramKylie Jenner may make an appearance with her boyfriend, Chanel ambassador and actor Timothee ChalametNorthern lad Harry Styles is also hotly tipped to join the Chanel front row
These types of events usually attract some sort of Kardashian/Jenner member, and with Kylie Jenner currently dating Timothee, the young couple may make an appearance – though most will be holding their breath for big sister Kim.
Kendall Jenner is also on the rumoured celebrity guest list, as the supermodel has previously walked for Chanel.
Lily-Rose Depp seems a likely name to appear – the model, actor, and daughter of Johnny Depp was personally chosen by the late Karl Lagerfeld to be a Chanel ambassador.
Some of the most famous celebrities in the entire world have been in the UK for various events in the last week, including Beyonce and Jay-Z, and Taylor Swift. Will any of them extend their stay to come up north?
And then there are those with a local connection, like for Manchester United legend David Beckham, with high-fashion wife and Spice Girl Victoria Beckham.
Harry Styles could crop up too, with his roots just down the road in Holmes Chapel.
Vogue editor Anna Wintour seems the most likely of all to be sitting front row on Thomas Street tomorrow night.
Sacha Lord has already confirmed that he has received an invite, and Andy Burnham may well be given a seat too.
Danny Jones -
28th December 2022 
