Frida Gustavsson Confirms What We Suspected About Henry Cavill's Behavior On The Witcher Set
In the electrifying Season 1 finale of Netflix's popular video-game-to-blockbuster-TV adaptation of "The Witcher," Henry Cavill's monster-slaying series lead Geralt of Rivia has an unsettling encounter with a figure from his past. That figure is his mother, the sorceress Visenna, played by Swedish actress Frida Gustavsson, who, after her one-off stint in "The Witcher," would go on to a starring role as Freydis Eriksdotter in the eagerly anticipated "Vikings: Valhalla."
And there's a reason Geralt's motherly visitation catches the hero off his guard. Because the fact he's "seeing" her at all is due to the mind-altering, supernatural infection surging through his body. As it turns out, early in the episode, Geralt is bitten by one of the monsters infesting the graves of the dead left in the wake of the battle for Cintra seen in the previous installment. As he lapses into a coma-like, semiconscious state, Geralt has visions of his childhood, including people from his past, his mother among them. It's during one of these visions that he has pointed questions for Gustavsson's Visenna, including why she abandoned him in his youth, to which she can only provide somewhat cryptic answers. All of this being said, fans of the show may be interested to learn what Gustavsson had to say when queried about acting alongside Cavill and what she thought of his behavior on the set of "The Witcher."
Frida Gustavsson clearly approves of Henry Cavill's behavior on The Witcher's set
Frida Gustavsson's interaction with Henry Cavill on "The Witcher" was limited to her single-episode appearance in the first season's finale, "Much More," which, incidentally, identifies her character simply as Ma. But even though their on-screen time together was relatively short, it nonetheless allowed Gustavsson the opportunity to evaluate Cavill not only as a highly paid leading man but also simply as a human being interacting with the rest of the cast on a day-to-day basis.
In an interview with Collider: Ladies Night, Gustavsson had only good things to say about the monster-slaying star, reporting that acting with him was a case study in how a series' lead should conduct themselves. "He taught me so much on how a number one should behave," she said. "Even though ... I have only two little scenes with him, it was incredible to see a star of that magnitude for me, coming in and being this random Swedish actress." She went on to say, "You hear so many stories about, 'Oh, all of these Hollywood actors, and they're just in their trailers with their massage therapists, and they're so horrible,' and then to meet this man who is not only the most talented and gorgeous man but [also] just such a lovely person, that was a big inspiration for me."
So while the fact remains that even though she shared only a few moments on-screen with him, Frida Gustavsson was able to confirm what many of us may have suspected about Henry Cavill's behavior on the set of "The Witcher."