Will Netflix/Gerwig’s NARNIA’s origin be a Stairway to Heaven?

Director Greta Gerwig (Barbie) has unveiled the trailer for the forthcoming The Magician’s Nephew, with the hopes it will lead to the full range of ‘Narnia’ books being brought to the screen.

Though the Chronicles of Narnia have been conceived for the screen before (including for the BBC in 1988 and three bigger-budget offerings: 2005’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 2008’s Prince Caspian and 2010’s The Voyage of the Dawn Treader) the full range of books have never been collectively seen beyond the printed page. Generations of readers have found their way to Narnia through the series of books, tomes that were likely more accessible to the young and the young at heart than Lord of the Rings  and the works of J R R Tolkien (one of Lewis’ close colleagues and friends). Though Lewis apparently thematically preferred the published order of his novels, Gerwig has said she felt it was important to begin the ‘Chronicles…‘ with The Magician’s Nephew, the book which revealed the origin of the fantastical land but which had never been adapted on screen before. (It was actually the sixth book published – in 1955, four years after the first and historically most famous  The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – but the first in chronological narrative order).

The Magician’s Nephew is a story rich with metaphors about hope, temptation and curiosity. It follows two children – Digory and Polly, played by newcomers David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell –  who are staying with an eccentric elderly inventor and possible ‘magician’ Andrew Ketterley (Daniel Craig) allowing Digory’s mother time to recuperate from a serious illness. They discover the way to access a realm known as the Wood between the Worlds that contains portals to far off lands.  They also witness a mighty lion known as Aslan create a new world, but also see a seed that might one day destroy it. The story introduces Jadis (Emma Mackey) the last Queen of Charn, a woman who will become Narnia’s White Witch and who has an important role to play in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

The film version does have some changes form the classic original. Gerwig’s story moves the story from the Edwardian era (early 1900s) of the book to the 1950s.  There was some more gnashing of teeth from some quarters when it was announced that Meryl Streey would voice Aslan – a character that’s traditionally portrayed as male and a counterpart to religious figures like Jesus. However, Streep’s voice is a versatile instrument in and of itself and the visual appearance of Aslan appears the same as previous incarnations, so it’s likely that any complaints about ‘regendering’ are somewhat moot. (It’s unlikely that magic lions actually need pronouns or that such will be referenced in the film).

The original book describes the mystical lion Aslan singing the land of Narnia into existence and Gerwig has said that music is hugely important to her vision she sees and she sees part of the story as a kind of rock opera – citing the likes of David Bowie and Labyrinth. The soundtrack will feature a reworking of Led Zepplin’s Stairway to Heaven, used with the permission and cooperation of the classic band.

It’s hard to know if the overt mix of old and new and stylistic choices will come together well, but the trailer suggests that, at least, it does have the original’s heart.

The Magician’s Nephew will get an IMAX/theatrical release on 12th February, 2027 and begin streaming on Netflix from 2nd April, 2027.