Henry Cavill Nearly Went Blind Filming The Witcher—Here’s What Really Happened

Henry Cavill isn’t just playing Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher. He’s living it. Grit, stunts, swordplay – sure. But the most dangerous part? Colored contacts. The very ones that gave Geralt those piercing yellow eyes nearly cost Henry Cavill his real vision.

He insisted on fully donning the character from the get-go, even if it meant ignoring professional warnings. His eye technician had one job: to protect his sight. “My eye-technician was always pushing me to say like, ‘No, I don’t care. I don’t care what you need to shoot, take, take the bloody contacts out, because you will start to go blind after a while.’” Cavill told Metro.co.uk. But being stubborn in full Witcher mode, he kept going. “I’ll say, ‘No, it’s alright we can shoot couple more hours, will be fine.’” Spoiler alert: it was not fine.

Volcanic Dust, Stinging Eyes, & A Stubborn Witcher: Henry Cavill Nearly Went Blind For The Role

Trouble really hit while filming on the Canary Islands. The volcanic terrain created fine, dusty debris that made its way behind Cavill’s contacts. Cue the slow burn. Cavill’s eyes started to sting badly. However, instead of stopping, he powered through, hiding in the shadows with his eyes closed between takes. Witcher or not, that’s dedication to the point of danger.