Double standards seem to be the rule rather than the exception in Tinseltown. Case point: Jenna Ortega and Henry Cavill found themselves at the center of attention because of their quest for authenticity in their respective projects. But the reactions to their actions have been wildly divergent.
Popular for her role in the critically acclaimed Netflix series Wednesday, Ortega, 21, was praised as a hero for her attempts to maintain the character’s authenticity. Fans praised her willingness to bring authenticity and depth to the role, as she “started changing lines” into the script during her time on set.
Nonetheless, Cavill, who starred in the well-liked Netflix series The Witcher (2019–2023), has received flak for his attempts to maintain the authenticity of the source material. Sadly, it was already too late when his fans learned of his efforts.
Netflix ultimately chose to take a different approach and decided to remove him from the role of Geralt of Rivia. Well, this double standard between the responses to these actors’ actions is eye-popping, actually!
Wednesday: Jenna Ortega Frequently Revised Scripts To Fit Her Character
Netflix has created several popular series since it began creating its own original content, and this trend has not slowed down in the slightest over time. In the past few years, the streaming platform has released Season 1 of Wednesday and Season 3 of The Witcher, among others.
Jenna Ortega became prominent overnight when she starred in Alfred Gough & Miles Millar’s horror-comedy series Wednesday, which debuted on Netflix in November 2022. Also, for her performance, she was a nominee for a Golden Globe, a Primetime Emmy, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Ortega talked about how she joined Wednesday and came to represent the show’s title character in an interview with Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast. Not only did she famously acknowledge that she often edited her script without consulting the writers, but she also explained why she added her own ideas to the script:
“Everything that she does, everything that I had to play, did not make sense for her character at all. Her being in a love triangle made no sense.”
The actress, 21, talked about how often she felt “unprofessional” because of the expectations placed on actors versus writers in traditional roles on TV shows. Ortega told the podcast:
“I don’t think I’ve ever had to put my foot down on a set in the way that I had to on Wednesday because it’s so easy to fall into that category..There was times on that set where I even became almost unprofessional, in a sense, where I just started changing lines.”
By December 2022, it had accrued 1 billion viewing hours, making it the second most-watched English-language Netflix series ever, three weeks after its debut (per Variety). Given the enormous praise her performance has received, it appears that Ortega’s changes turned out to be the right call after all.
However, Henry Cavill, who was also battling for authenticity for his role in The Witcher, was made to let go of the show.
Henry Cavill Had to Leave The Witcher Despite Advocating Authenticity?
The Witcher was once one of the most anticipated TV shows on Netflix. One of the main reasons behind this was the success of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt video game, which went on to win the Game of the Year Award in 2015. Wild Hunt itself explored the lore established by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski’s The Witcher novels.
Henry Cavill, being a big fan of the games as well as the books, was the perfect candidate to portray the Butcher of Blaviken. However, ever since Season 1, the show has been marred with difficulties.
Even after being compared with Game of Thrones (see Telegraph), Season 1 did not actually nail it in terms of its storyline. As the seasons progressed, the plot seemed to deviate more and more from the books, much to the distaste of the series’ fans. Among the cast members, Cavill was the only one who expressed his dissatisfaction with the way things were being handled storywise.
Not only that, Sapkowski, 75, himself revealed the showrunners chose to completely ignore him, refusing to take his advice and exercising creative liberties that ruined the show for a lot of people, including Cavill.
Though it has not been explicitly mentioned, Cavill’s departure from the franchise close to his heart is only indicative of a battle he lost against the show’s creatives. After his exit, the future of Netflix’s The Witcher lies uncertain.
However, the way Jenna Ortega was allowed to mold Wednesday’s script; is that indicative of a major change? Is there hope, or is Hollywood practicing its double standards? Only time will make it clearer.
Both The Witcher and Wednesday are streaming on Netflix.
