The Witcher: Who Does Shang-Chi's Meng'er Zhang Play In Season 3?
Contains spoilers for "The Witcher" Season 3, Episode 8 — "The Cost of Chaos"
Meng'er Zhang is a Chinese actress who, until recently, boasted one, singular mainstream credit. In 2021, Zhang starred in "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" as Xu Xialing, the titular character's younger, deadlier, and more successful sister. Before entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she lent most of her time and talents to the stage, where she starred in productions such as "Oliver Twist." Now, with Marvel under her belt, she's branching out into prestige television with Netflix's live-action adaptation of "The Witcher."
Based on a series of novels written by Andrzej Sapkowski, Netflix's high fantasy series chronicles the adventures of Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill, soon to be Liam Hemsworth) and his found family as they struggle to survive monsters, wars, and each other. And as the world continues to grow, so does its cast. In the last two episodes of Season 3, Zhang portrays Milva, an elven refugee taking shelter in Brokilon, an encampment of Dryads.
Milva's purpose in Season 3 is to set aside her personal reservations about Geralt, whose gruff demeanor grates upon even the most patient individuals, and help him heal from the near-lethal damage he suffered at the skilled hands of Vilgefortz of Roggeveen (Mahesh Jadu). It's a supporting role with comparatively minor screen time. Here's what audiences can expect from Milva if her character features more prominently in later seasons, based on her stories from the source material.
Milva's journey with Geralt and Jaskier
Born with the name Maria Barring, Milva is a hunter who fled home at a young age to escape the potential consequences of killing her abusive stepfather. She survived off the land for a time, avoiding danger wherever she could. But the Continent is a dangerous place, even for the mighty. The Dryads of Brokilon, a forest known to humankind as the Forest of Death, offered Milva shelter and a creative outlet for her lethal skillset. In their name, she led almost 100 violent humans to their demise by pretending to serve as their guide on crusades where the end goal was to slaughter the Dryads.
Through brief conversations in Season 3, Episode 8 between Milva and Eithné (Josette Simmons) and later between Milva and Geralt, it seems as though some variation of these traumatic events have already occurred.
At the end of Season 3, Episode 8, Milva joins Geralt and Jaskier (Joey Batey) on their quest to rescue Ciri (Freya Allan) from Nilfgaard. In the source material, Milva struggles to abide by Geralt's decisions along the way, many of which she disagrees with. The trio also encounters Cahir (Eamon Farren) on their journey, last seen in Season 3 as a tentative ally, whose own opinions only cause the conflict between Milva and Geralt to grow stronger.
But she dutifully follows Geralt, even so far as to Stygga Castle, Vilgefortz's hideout. In the source material, it is there that she perishes from a well-aimed arrow.
Milva's fate might not be set in stone
Netflix's live-action adaptation of "The Witcher" is not afraid to kill off its characters. But it's also not afraid to stray from its source material. And while this lax approach to adapting Andrzej Sapkowski's work might have played a key role in driving Cavill away from the project (he was originally committed to "The Witcher" for seven seasons), it might be Milva's saving grace.
Season 3 set the stage for Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra) to remain in Aretuza in a leadership position. Even if the series will undoubtedly continue to showcase her journey such as it is, there's a character dynamic vacuum in Geralt's immediate party, one that Milva will likely serve to fill for the foreseeable future.
To be clear, it's unlikely that any deviations in Milva's story will serve to replace the intimacy between Geralt and Yennefer, but might rather replace their banter. The two are far too emotionally locked in for a romantic usurper plotline to tread water. It's also worth noting that Geralt would have needed a new character to banter with anyway, even if he wasn't parting ways with Yennefer. No one in his immediate group challenges him; not Jaskier, and certainly not Yennefer, who spends the better part of Season 3 undergoing rigorous character growth. Milva, on the other hand, currently has no qualms when it comes to telling Geralt off. And if that platonic chemistry clicks, then Milva might avoid her tragic fate, at least for a little while.
All of "The Witcher" Season 3 is now available to stream on Netflix.