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…
Lottery Winners help debut new hometown anthem ‘Song For Leigh’ at massive stadium gig
Danny Jones
Indie pop favourites Lottery Winners smashed their first-ever solo stadium show at Leigh Sports Village at the end of May, and they also helped debut a dedicated hometown anthem for the town.
One of several current stars coming from in and around the Wigan music scene, it’s been a big few years for the Greater Manchester band, and their biggest-ever headline show on Saturday was yet more proof of just how much they’ve achieved in their career thus far.
That being said, however, this lot will never, EVER forget where they’ve been and, most importantly, where they come from.
You’ll find no better example of that than their sold-out LSV gig, which saw multiple celebrations of their local area, than one particular moment…
Posting on social media in the aftermath of the landmark live performance for the four-piece, frontman Thom Rylance wrote: “Little old Leigh, I haven’t slept a wink. I’m not sure I ever will again. I’ve never felt such a powerful punch of love hit me like that before, and I’m not even sure what to do with it all.
“Thanks isn’t enough, but let’s start there. Thank you for carrying us all this way. Thank you for making us feel special. Thank you for making all of this feel proper. Thank you to the grown-ups who trusted us with such a mammoth thing. Absolutely stupid that you let us do that, but I hope we made you proud.
“The feeling I get from looking across and seeing my best mates on the planet literally living their dream, in full HD, makes me so happy I could burst into bubbles. And thank you to Leigh. Our home. Our people. Nobody does it better. Last night was proof that ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things.”
But as mentioned, perhaps the most wholesome part of the entire event was when they aired a brand-new tune created by Spirix Collective – a group of local musicians, dancers, and all-round creatives based in the heart of Leigh. Here’s what they’ve made:
What a lovely thing for everyone tied to this place.
Produced partly in an effort as part of the historic Lancashire county village’s bid to become the UK’s next first Town of Culture, it’s a track created on behalf not just of Leigh itself but to further help shine a light on the often criminally-overlooked borough of Wigan.
As for natives themselves, they signed off the milestone by adding in the caption: “Lottery Winners are massive. KOKO [Keep on keeping on].”
It’s fair to say that after seeing some of the scenes from over the weekend, we tend to agree.
Who was there on the night and, whether you were lucky enough to be or not, what do you make of the ‘Song For Leigh’ now you’ve heard it?
Featured Images — Ianthe Warlow (supplied via Deacon Communications)
TV & Showbiz
Gracie Abrams announces multiple nights in Manchester on latest UK tour
Danny Jones
Global superstar Gracie Abrams has just announced her biggest run of live dates in Manchester ever, with the US singer-songwriter set to play multiple big shows here in 0161.
Wait until you hear how many…
That’s right, Gracie Abrams is playing not one, not two, but THREE whole nights in Manchester city centre on an extensive European tour entitled ‘The Look at my Life’, with a lengthy UK leg next year, too.
Returning to the same venue she graced (get it?) back in March 2025, the American is rejecting all notions of the ‘nepo baby’ accusations and focusing on what she does best, messing things up and not just blowing smoke, but continuing to book huge gigs across the globe.
Posting on socials, the bedroom and indie-pop artist wrote: “Honoured to be joined by Rachel Chinouriri, Holly Humberstone, Del Water Gap, Charlotte Lawrence, Grace Ives, Bella Kay, Jensen McRae and The Japanese House across North America and by Samia and Jake Minch across the UK and Europe.
Advising fans across the pond to pre-order her new album, Daughter From Hell/sign up for her mailing list before 12 noon on Monday, 1 June, if they want the best chances of securing early access, she confirmed that tickets for all three Mancs go live as early next week.
She signed off by adding, “I have missed you, and I love you so much! More to come soon.”
To be honest, it’s not been all that long since we last saw her, so we can only applaud her work ethic.
As for the record itself, her newest LP will be her third studio project and definitely looks to be toying with the narrative spouted by her detractors to some extent…
‘Daughter from Hell’ My third album is out July 17 Hit the Wall this Thursday night Whoa whoa whoa Freaking out I am so ready for it to be yours ❤️ Available to pre-order nowhttps://t.co/hR1l0UShXcpic.twitter.com/i26tu5sJcx
Coming to Manchester and just a handful of other domestic locations in spring 2027, the only place she’s playing more concerts is London.
Daughter From Hell is set for a 7 July release date, and we can’t wait to see what the 26-year-old’s latest musical chapter entails.
Here in Manchester, warm-up will come from superb support act, Samia, who we caught opening up for Maggie Rogers a few years back, and we can only vouch for the quality of her live performances as well.
Once again, general admission tickets for her three Manchester gigs on 22, 24 and 25 April at 9am local time on Friday, 5 June.
Danny Jones -
28th December 2022 
