The Witcher's Joey Batey on the show's first queer romance
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The Witcher season 3 part 1 spoilers to follow.
Rainbow Crew is an ongoing interview series that celebrates the best LGBTQ+ representation on screen. Each instalment showcases talent working on both sides of the camera, including queer creatives and allies to the community.
Next up, we're speaking to The Witcher star Joey Batey.
To refer to Joey Batey's Jaskier as a bit of a fan favourite is an understatement. The Witcher obsessives live for his wit, his offbeat charm and of course, his heart.
Having played the character for five years over the course of three seasons and a spin-off show it’s safe to say that Joey knows Jaskier inside out.
He’s more than just the flirtatious Bard viewers were introduced to in season one, the comic relief amongst the monster guts. Jaskier has become more richly complex just as Joey has grown into the role.
In an exclusive interview with Digital Spy, Joey opens up about exploring Jaskier in more depth and the emotional process of watching Henry Cavill film his last scene as Geralt of Rivia.
The star also breaks down what it was like to delve into Jaskier’s queerness through a new electric romance with Prince Radovid (Hugh Skinner).
How has your character evolved over the course of the show?
Quite a lot. I think he began with a kind of frenetic, almost flirtatious energy. He was very passionate. He was very peacocky.
But by the time we got to season two, I tried to explore a little bit more of the sadness in him, or perhaps the melancholy and by season three, we continue with that vulnerability, but he's a bit braver at times.
Every single season, I just keep exploring little bits of his heart and soul, and I'm discovering more about him which is just the best job in the world.
Obviously he's started off as this kind of comic relief, and now we're getting layers and layers to him. What is your kind of favourite aspect to draw out of him?
I think the thing in season three that I like is, we're seeing a bit more of the scholar. We're seeing a more intelligent side to him. He's making decisions, and they may not be the right decisions, but he's trying to do what he thinks is best for his found family.
So that's what I love exploring more and more of while we shoot. Off set, what I often like from Jaskier – it sounds really strange – he takes up my brain. But there have been times when I've had to go, 'I need a more performative energy,' and I'm very envious of his confidence. I think that's something I draw on when I need to.
You said that he's becoming a lot braver in series three. Will that bravery potentially get him into some trouble later on as the season progresses?
Very potentially, yes. What we see a lot of in part one, which I was really happy about, is not only a sort of spiritual bravery, but also he is putting himself on the line, and attempting to save people and that was a huge conversation that I had with [showrunner] Lauren [Schmidt Hissrich].
He was sort of involved in fight scenes. I asked her, and she very graciously agreed that he should be saving people, not hitting people with sticks or swords.
By the end of part two, there's a real decision. He sort of knows his role, not only in the family, but in combat, which is: 'I have to look after all the NPCs, all the hostages.'
That's, you know, his quiet, little way of helping. It's not as exciting to watch as maybe Henry's fighting but, you know, I enjoy it.
It's a very important role to have. Very worthy.
I think so. He's probably written 1,000 ballads about it.
Officially, it's now become canon that Jaskier is queer, which had never really been explicitly said before in the past. Was that something you knew about your character from the beginning, from season one?
No, it wasn't. It's something I explored in my own exploration of the character but canonically, in the books, he is nothing but heterosexual, as far as my reading goes and so I was doing my best to do that.
Lauren came to me just before season three, and was like, 'By the way, we'd like to explore this plot line.' I was nervous, but I wholeheartedly applaud Lauren for diving into that.
My number-one priority, which I said to her, was just to make sure that we were doing it right, and that we did it sensitively with a care and a kinship and I wanted to avoid all kinds of stereotyping, really.
So there was an awful lot of script rewrites and things like that. We deleted whole scenes in favour of songs. So I brought in a new song, and I said, 'Can we just cut all this dialogue, and I can just sing something?'
Do you think that Jaskier's queerness was maybe a response to what the audience was kind of picking up in your character, or do you think that this was more of a creative decision?
I think, very sadly, you'd have to ask Lauren. I was more concerned with the "how". I did ask why we were taking this character in this direction – it is a departure from the books and I think Lauren's probably much better qualified to answer that than I.
Do you remember what she said when you asked why?
I do, yeah, but I think she'd like to articulate it in her way.
Jaskier has fallen for someone, Radovid. What was it like developing that relationship?
Well, it helps that Hugh [Skinner], who plays Radovid, is just the most wonderful human being, and is a phenomenal talent.
He has this ability to have such stillness. There's a strangeness to him as well – to the character, not Hugh. I mean, Hugh's a bit strange [laughs]. A wonderful strange.
There was a way that he could look at me in scenes that just really made me feel like he was trying to figure me out, and trying to work out where Jaskier's mask ended, and trying to almost goad Jaskier into lowering it.
It really felt like a game of chicken in a way – a flirtatious game of chicken – where they were meeting, and working each other out, and seeing who would be vulnerable first.
So exploring that with Hugh throughout the season was really, really… I felt very safe with his talent and his thoughtfulness that went into it, because it just also had this real energy to it. Like a little frisson of electricity whenever we shot together.
I didn't have to do anything. I just stood back, and let Hugh do all the work [laughs].
Was there any pressure on your side, knowing that people have been wanting this kind of queer representation a bit more in the show?
I try not to think about expectations. I think with a show like this, and a fandom that is so deeply passionate, we'd all go slightly mad if we did try and incorporate expectations or responses to, you know, recent releases.
I very much, for the past couple of years, have tried to leave the character at the door, and leave these stories at the door, and, by extension, leave the fandom at the door. It means that I'm freer when it comes back round again.
For season four, for example, it's been a year, when we'll start shooting. So you just focus entirely on the scripts and the character. I think otherwise I'd go a bit bananas.
How does their relationship develop in part two?
Ooh. Let's just say that this burgeoning connection is certainly tested.
Let's talk about your relationship with Geralt. That friendship has kind of stood. Why do you think that they've managed to stay such good friends despite being so different?
I think Henry and I really tried to step away from what we did in season one, and just settle on respect because, essentially, that's what, in my reading of the books, what they have.
These are the guys who share a bottle of vodka, and discuss philosophy. They challenge each other but they also enjoy each other's company, and that's the respect that comes from years of being friends. Loyalty doesn't come from nowhere.
A lot of people, I think, like to see Jaskier as going like, 'Ah, you – I'm going to be friends with you. I'm going to follow you everywhere,' but it has been years, and it has been based on respect.
We haven't seen an awful lot of that on screen until sort of late in season two, really. So we were really excited to explore that more in season three.
What was it like filming this season knowing that it will be Henry Cavill's last?
Well, I didn't know. None of us knew. I knew a little. There was an air of finality about it on set, in the final days of shooting. The shoot was really difficult and very challenging for so many reasons, a lot of it just logistical and we were all very, very tired, and worn out. There was a real scramble to try to get some of the tiniest shots done.
It wasn't anything to do with these big scenes. It was just tiny, little pickups that we were running around, trying to get done.
I remember being there on Henry's last day. I had nothing but pride. He was doing fight scene after fight scene. He was learning fight scenes on the day, walking in, and executing them perfectly, thanks to his collaboration with Wolfgang, our stunt coordinator.
It was just pride. That's all it is. That's all we have for him. I think his Geralt is an incredibly special performance. I was about to say "definitive" but hopefully not the only definitive performance. It certainly meant an awful lot to me personally, to work with him and I was just so happy to see him on his final days, still throwing his heart and soul into it. He never stopped, and he never will.
It's going to be hard to imagine The Witcher without him, but we're sure that Liam will come in and do a grand job as well.
I hope so, yeah. It's going to be slightly odd. I'm going to call him Henry so many times. I can just already see it in my head. [laughs]
We're sure he will forgive you.
I hope so.
The Witcher season 1-3 volume 1 is now streaming on Netflix. Season 3 volume 2 will launch on 27 July 2023. Spin-off The Witcher: Blood Origin is also available to watch on Netflix.
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