Why Not All Witchers Have Yellow Eyes And White Hair Like Geralt

 The Witcher's Geralt of Rivia is an iconic figure with his white hair and yellow eyes - but Season 2 shows that this is not a common Witcher trait.

Netflix's The Witcher season 2 raises the question of why Geralt’s iconic hair and eye color are not a common Witcher trait. In season 1, The Witcher's main character makes quite the first impression – as aside from being a towering man of considerable bulk, Geralt of Rivia’s most distinguishing looks are his striking yellow eyes and white shoulder-length hair. Given this unusual appearance, it’s a natural assumption to make that all Witchers possess similar features, but The Witcher season 2 makes it clear that this is not the case.

During the first season of The Witcher, Geralt is the only monster slayer to make an appearance, since the story’s focus is mainly on establishing key characters and world-building. As such, there aren’t any other Witchers to compare the protagonist to and draw conclusions about distinguishing traits. However, with the release of The Witcher season 2, viewers have more material to work with. Geralt, now accompanied by his Child Surprise, Princess Cirilla of Cintra, journeys to his home in the mountains in Kaer Morhen. It houses what remains of the Witcher tribe, Geralt’s family of mutated monster hunters. From here, it soon becomes glaringly obvious that none of these men share his distinctive countenance.

Contrary to popular theory, Geralt’s white hair has nothing to do with him being nearly a century old; the answer can be found by taking a look at his backstory. Witcher apprentices begin training at a very young age. Not only are they coached in arduous physical and magical combat, but their very physiology is altered to heighten their senses and abilities to the extreme. The chemical process that gives Witchers like Geralt their powers is called the 'Trial of the Grasses', and its subjects undergo excruciating pain; so much so that only “3 out of 10 boys survive the trial.” Geralt is not only successfully mutated, he is also the only child to be subject to further experimentation due to his remarkable ability to handle the process well. The side effects of these extra modifications cause his hair to whiten (earning him the ‘White Wolf’ title) and his eyes to turn yellow, which is why other Witchers lack his unique pigmentation.

Season 2, episode 3 “Kaer Morhen” introduces the current Witcher clan – a mere handful of 12 men, most prominently Vesemir, Eskel, Lambert and Coen. While quick to respond to a threat and possessing abilities far surpassing that of any human, the rest of season 2's Witchers clearly do not possess Geralt’s iconic features. Coen has a black beard and eyes of differing colors, his partner-in-crime Lambert is a redhead with brown eyes, and Geralt’s close friend Eskel is a blue-eyed brunet. Vesemir, the oldest Witcher, is by far the closest to sharing similar physical attributes with the White Wolf, with gold eyes and grey hair. However, this is the cause of aging, as Vesemir is strongly suspected to be over 300 years old, having witnessed the fall of Kaer Morhen - and in The Witcher: Nightmare Of The Wolf, a younger Vesemir is shown around this time with black hair, supporting the idea his gray hair is merely a reflection of his age.

In spite of Geralt’s typical indifference and devil-may-care personality, it appears as though the process of mutation, along with the resulting physical transformation and side effects, continues to be a sore spot for him. This is evident in season 1, episode 8, “Much More” when Geralt hallucinates his mother and mockingly asks her, “How do you like my eyes?” His tightly controlled rage - evident in his unblinking eyes and the tense lines on his face - proves that deep down, the Butcher of Blaviken is still haunted by the trauma of the mutation he underwent to become a Witcher.

There is no disputing the fact that the strenuous training regime and multiple fatal mutations serves to make Geralt a formidable killer with an impressive appearance to top it off. The Witcher season 2 proves that white hair and yellow eyes are not a characterizing Witcher trait, since they can be attributed to the extra mutations that Geralt is subjected to as a child. And to many, this is likely the best-case scenario - as it allows Geralt to stand out just that little bit extra from the rest of the characters in the franchise.