Geralt Actor Criticizes 'Woke' Label for Ciri-Led Witcher 4

Doug Cockle, the iconic voice behind Geralt in The Witcher series, has robustly responded to the backlash surrounding The Witcher 4's focus on Ciri, urging detractors to "read the damn books." Addressing the criticism head-on, Cockle described the negative reactions as "just stupid," especially the claims that the game is becoming "woke" simply because Ciri, Geralt's adoptive daughter, will take the lead role.

In a video interview with Fall Damage, Cockle emphasized that Ciri's prominence in the upcoming game is not a shift towards political correctness but a natural progression of the story. "It's not woke," he asserted. "There's nothing woke about it. [Ciri]'s a cool character from The Witcher, and they're gonna focus on that character, and that's awesome."

Despite Geralt's continued presence in The Witcher 4, the decision to center the narrative around Ciri sparked controversy among some fans last year. Cockle, however, sees this as a necessary evolution. "We can't just have Geralt for every single game for The Witcher ad nauseam, out through eternity," he explained. He highlighted that Geralt's journey concluded with the expansion "Blood and Wine," suggesting it's time for new stories to be told.

Cockle expressed his support for Ciri's role, stating, "I celebrate Ciri. I celebrate her being the protagonist. So all you people who think it's woke... [blows raspberry]."

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Cockle also pointed out that Ciri's role in The Witcher 4 aligns with the broader narrative universe crafted by Andrzej Sapkowski in his original novels. He noted that while The Witcher 3 touched on Ciri's story, it remained centered on Geralt. "If you read the books, then you understand why CD Projekt went down this avenue," Cockle said. "There's a whole rich world of stuff to explore with Ciri, that they didn't do when they put her into Witcher 3, because the story was about Geralt. But she hints at it."

Encouraging fans to dive into the source material, Cockle added, "If you think it's woke, read the damn books — they're good, first of all. And secondly, you won't think it's so woke anymore."

CD Projekt's games are set in a timeline that loosely follows the conclusion of Sapkowski's novels, though the author himself has distanced his work from the video game adaptations. Sapkowski, much like CD Projekt, recognizes Ciri as a crucial character ready to take the spotlight when Geralt steps back.

IGN has previously explored the continuity of Geralt's return in The Witcher 4 with CD Projekt's franchise and lore designers, Cian Maher and Marcin Batylda, who confirmed that the timeline aligns seamlessly with the established events.