Behind the Scenes
‘Witcher’ Star Anna Shaffer Went to School for Sorcery (Kind Of)
Now, here’s an actor who definitely understood the assignment.
By Brittany Vincent
Dec. 17, 2021
‘Witcher’ Star Anna Shaffer Went to School for Sorcery (Kind Of) - Netflix Tudum
Anna Shaffer's career began with sorcery, and the realm of magic has welcomed her back once more with The Witcher.
The English actor made her on-screen debut in 2009, as Hogwarts student Romilda Vane in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Completely smitten with Harry, Romilda ultimately wouldn't win the affections of The Boy Who Lived, but she did form an important part of Dumbledore’s Army. Shaffer stayed a player in the Harry Potter universe throughout the series’ last three films, learning spell-casting and sorcery along the way. Those lessons in witchcraft would come in handy again when she snagged her role as the fiery sorceress of Temeria, Triss Merigold, in The Witcher.
Before heading to Kaer Morhen, however, Schafer did her time on the mega-popular British teen soap Hollyoaks, where she played the sneaky, troublemaking Ruby Button, little sister of plucky, awkward Duncan Button. If Romilda is an obsessive type, Ruby is a total "tearaway," as the official Hollyoaks website describes. Her character steals cars to go on joyrides, bullies younger students and tries to get her ex-boyfriend expelled from school. Through every role, Shaffer’s shown her range at bringing to life diverse and lively characters.
Shaffer divided her time between two schools as she added several TV roles to her resume, appearing in British series Glue, Class and Fearless. Following her starring role in 2018 action flick I Am Vengeance, Shaffer decided to exit Hollyoaks and make “a fresh start.”
She got exactly what she was looking for with The Witcher. As Triss Merigold, Shaffer portrays one of the most important women in Geralt of Rivia’s (Henry Cavill) life. Triss is a magic user who always holds her own in a fight and serves as an older-sister figure to young Ciri, played by Freya Allan. She’s also an integral part of Witcher lore and will have a larger role in the story as the series carries on into Season 2.
Shaffer began her career as a fledgling witch but has successfully navigated into full-on sorceress territory, with the coolest man in Kaer Morhen as a good friend. You can absolutely call that a glow up. Potter who?
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