MANILA, Philippines — British actress Freya Allan got her biggest break and was introduced to the global audience via the epic action-fantasy The Witcher.
It was back in 2019 when The Philippine STAR first got to know the newcomer who was taking on one of the Netflix series’ most important characters.
The rising star got cast as Ciri, the princess “with a dangerous secret,” in the series adaptation of the best-selling books and short stories written by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. In case you don’t know, The Witcher is set in the fictional world of The Continent and revolves around Geralt of Rivia — played by Superman actor Henry Cavill — a lone wolf of a “witcher,” also known as a trained monster slayer with superhuman powers.
Two years after the first season — which emerged as the third most-watched English-language series of all time after Bridgerton Season 1 and Stranger Things Season 3 — The STAR was able to catch up with Freya, now 20, through an exclusive Zoom interview.
“I don’t really know what my expectations were,” Freya recalled her first season experience. “I think, the whole of that time, I was just a bit of a lost puppy. I wasn’t quite sure of what was happening. I didn’t know whether it was going to be a success or wasn’t going to be a success.”
But after Season 1’s global success, she felt more confident about the show entering its sophomore season. “I think Season 2 definitely does. Season 2 is far more slick, far more visually satisfying,” she also said.
Freya noted that there were several things that she loved about the development of her character Ciri in the second season.
“I loved that I get to do things other than run through the woods (laughs). No, I loved the whole arc this season for my character, I loved the relationships that got built among various characters — Geralt, Vesemir, Yennefer even,” she noted, referring to the characters of co-stars Henry Cavill, Kim Bodnia (who is one of the show’s fresh faces) and Anya Chalotra.
She further said: “And also, you know, she has so much going on, she’s trying to deal with this power that she possesses, and she’s training really hard because she wants to be a Witcher. There are so many elements going on. She has all these things she got to play with and explore which is so exciting.”
Freya said that she felt her life somehow mirrored what Ciri experienced from Season 1 to Season 2. She said she shared many similarities with Ciri.
“I felt very much like we paralleled one another, in terms of the fact I was just 16, 17, had just been going to school in Oxford and during my thesis week, and being intense with all of that, and then suddenly I landed this big role, and having to experience an adult life of working and being with adults every day.
“I think that it almost felt like it paralleled with what Ciri was going through. She had this sort of sheltered life, as a princess, and with many protectors around her and there’s security in that which I felt was the equivalent of when I was in school. And suddenly she was just thrown out into the big world. It was very easy to get my head into that,” she noted.
“Generally, we have a lot of similarities. She’s got a lot of drive in her, a lot of determination, a lot of feistiness. And stubbornness, which is definitely me. So, her spirit is a lot like mine,” she added.
With The Witcher’s success and fandom also came fame. How did she deal with it?
“To be honest with you, I don’t really feel it at all. I think, other than the amount of followers I now have on Instagram, I don’t really feel it,” she opened up.
“I think the main thing is when you meet new people in the industry, there’s sort of this thing like, are they gonna treat you differently? (That’s) my main concern with being attached to the show. But other than that, I’m lucky to have not turned into any kind of crazy actor yet who, you know... I feel like a very lucky, normal being. I don’t feel above anybody else, as you shouldn’t feel,” she reflected.
Freya stressed that nothing changed. “You know, I’ve got my family, I’m always in Oxford which is so grounding and I got all my friends from school. I don’t feel much of a change and even if I do, I hope I’m gonna maintain that sort of real Freya... and not get stuck in that whole fame situation.”
She, nevertheless, said that there’s a positive side to being part of a project as popular as The Witcher. “Ultimately, it’s the result of being in a show or a movie or whatever that does really well. It’s a positive thing but you just got to handle it the right way.”
If you haven’t seen The Witcher Season 2 yet, one of the highly-anticipated parts is the meeting of Geralt and Ciri, and more on their intertwining fates.
In a previous interview, Freya told The STAR, that she learned a lot from working with Henry, him being the lead star and more seasoned actor.
She then said: “We had some really, really great conversations where you kind of, you know, talk me through things. I worried about what happens after the show comes out and things because obviously, you know, he started out acting when he was about 17.
“So, he kind of knows how I could be feeling and so it’s been really nice to have that, you feel really supported actually. And it’s great to have someone to speak to about things that I don’t know about and other people in my life don’t know about but he does because he’s very experienced within the industry and dealing with everything that comes with it.”
For the filming of Season 2, Freya still had the opportunity to ask for some advice from Henry.
“When I asked for advice, it was more to do with the practicality behind the industry because obviously he can navigate that a little bit more — stuff that isn’t necessarily or more stuff outside the actual (acting) job. It was great working with him. We became a really nice team.
And whenever there was a problem that we needed to solve within the scene, we supported each other. It was fun!”
The Witcher Season 2 is now available on Netflix and currently on the Top 10 list of most-viewed content on the streaming platform.