We interviewed Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan, the actresses that bring Yennefer and Ciri to life, respectively, in the series The Witcher.
The Conjunction of the Spheres is near. The countdown to the premiere on Netflix of one of the most anticipated series of the year is already starting: The Witcher. The Geralt de Rivia saga, written by Andrzej Sapkowksi, has been a milestone in fantastic literature and a benchmark in grimdark. In turn, CD Projekt Red provided an unforgettable video continuation that boosted a renewed interest in the sorcerer's adventures, his convulsive and bitter world that twists the Manichean archetypes of heroic fantasy.
Netflix has carried out an ambitious adaptation that has little to do with its Polish counterpart The Hexer, whose quality was not up to expectations. On the 20th, finally, we will have on our screens the adventure of a Geralt de Rivia played by a Henry Cavill who has reiterated his enthusiasm for one of his most dreamed roles. However, the sorcerer is not the only protagonist in his story. Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, producer and screenwriter of the series, has claimed in her version the relevance of Yennefer and Ciri, whose plots will be explored in more depth. In FreeGameTips we attend a round table with the actresses who will play the sorceress and the princess: Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan, who told us their own artistic process when it comes to giving life to two of the main characters in the series.
The personal journey of Yennefer and Ciri
None of the actresses had read the novels or played the games; with which his vision of the characters corresponds to his own construction based on the script and the guidelines received during the filming. Anya Chalotra appeared at Yennefer's casting without first knowing the sorceress and passed the tests with the most honest interpretation that seemed consistent with the material they gave her. As for Freya, the initial role they offered him was that of Marilka, a high school that appears in the first episode. "Then they called me and told me that Lauren, Alek (the director) and other producers were on their way to London to look for Ciri, I started to investigate who the character was and I said" it has to be for me. " After the casting, they called Allan the night before her birthday to announce that she would be the Cintra Leoncilla, which was for her the perfect gift.
The Witcher series is based mainly on novels and, as in any adaptation between formats, some necessary changes occur, just as they occurred between games and books. "These changes serve to support and develop the story," says Anya Chalotra. "I think that if fans perceive the passion and affection with which we have done this they will be happy about how we have taken care of each character." Chalotra compares Yennefer with her previous works in the sense that the actress projects her emotions in all her roles. Freya Allan, on the other hand, points out that he has never played a role similar to Ciri's.
Freya Allan as Ciri.
One of The Witcher's biggest differences with respect to novels, and even games, is the deepening of Yennefer de Vengerberg's past and his unfortunate adolescence before becoming the powerful woman we know. Anya Chalotra talked about the evolution of the sorceress: “We see how it has grown from its 14 to its 70 years, and it is a very empowering journey. What is important in Yennefer is how he discovers his powers, what they mean and where they have their roots: they are their own insecurities that feed the chaos in it and, in turn, said chaos feeds the magic. His strength is based on the resilience he has built in his childhood. It is incombustible, a survivor for what has happened. ” On the other hand, Ciri's trip has to do with a forced maturity: “Ciri comes from a very structured life, educated by people who have shaped her to adapt to her environment. She is very curious and ambitious, and this scares the people around her, who seeks to protect her even more from the outside world, even though she is very stubborn and tireless. Suddenly, his life takes a sudden turn and he loses all his loved ones. After that, we see her navigate through the brutality of the world, put herself in the place of other people and open her mind to other people with an antagonistic vision. He ends up seeing the kindness in people who detest his initial family, and that is a huge strength. It has to adapt continuously and in the end we see a different person that has little to do with his initial naivety; even sometimes we see her adopt an icy attitude to overcome everything that has happened to her and only trust herself. ” In addition, both Ciri and Yennefer show the grimdark's own moral complexity: we cannot qualify any of them as kind or evil; Each one has its own ethics and they act in consequence of their situation and interests. Allan describes this as an advantage when interpreting Ciri, since such ambiguity is much more authentic and grateful for the interpretation than to restrict himself to a character of absolute goodness or evil.
A story with its own identity
The Witcher has been compared to Game of Thrones, and has sometimes been branded as Netflix's response to the HBO blockbuster. Both the Geralt de Rivia saga and a Song of Ice and Fire are references of the grimdark with many points in common: characters with a rich moral complexity, a dark vision of the fantastic elements and a socio-political plot that overlaps with a supernatural and global threat . In both works, in addition, sex and violence look shy. Anya Chalotra, flattered by the comparison, considers The Witcher a story with its own identity and absolutely different from the Game of Thrones, although both series portray the same type of fantasy.
Anya Chalotra as Yennefer of Vengerberg.
Yennefer, Ciri and Geralt end up forming a family linked by destiny. The sorcerer and the sorceress forge a love story in which both learn to love, and the love that is born in them to Ciri and vice versa make the girl the daughter they cannot conceive naturally. Although the meeting between the three characters is yet to come, Anya and Freya have spent a lot of time together outside the screen. Freya also appreciates the support Henry Cavill gave him from day one, who held out his hand for everything the actress needed.
The Witcher has brought challenges and pleasant moments for both actresses. For Chalotra, the challenge was to manage the passage of time in the plot of the sorceress: “The most difficult thing is to follow the thread of a character that you play from his 14 years to his 70s and sometimes he lost a little bit of time. On the other hand, I loved working with so much CGI, even better than having a person in disguise in front, because imagination can go far beyond reality. ” Freya Allan highlights the first chapter as the most fun and difficult, because it shows how Ciri's life changes in a few moments: “In addition, I was with more bright and fun actors. There was a lot of camaraderie, people telling jokes; It was a lot of fun to go to the makeup caravan in the morning and see everyone talking and having a great time … And that was fine because in many scenes I am alone. ”
Both Yennefer and Ciri are characters that have conquered us both in novels and in video games. Women with virtues, defects and contradictions that give them a genuine humanity. Very soon, Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan will arrive on our screens to make even more real the enchantress of Vengerberg and the Leoncilla de Cintra.
