October 14, 2026, 12:54 pm | Read time: 3 minutes
Netflix ventures back into one of the most famous fantasy worlds. With “Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew,” the streaming service is filming a part of C. S. Lewis’s book series that has not yet been seen on the big screen. The first trailer now gives an impression of how director Greta Gerwig interprets the creation of Narnia.
New Narnia Film Tells the Backstory
For the film, Greta Gerwig, who achieved great success as a director with the hit movie “Barbie,” does not rely on the well-known stories of Susan, Peter, Edmund, and Lucy, which made their way to theaters in 2005. Instead, she adapts the story of “The Magician’s Nephew.” The book was published in 1955 as the sixth of the seven Narnia novels, but it narratively tells the backstory of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”
The story centers on the children Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer, played by David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell. Through magical rings, they travel to other worlds and eventually witness the creation of Narnia. The trailer shows, among other things, how the two explore a foreign world and encounter characters crucial to Narnia’s later story. This includes Jadis, played by Emma Mackey, who later becomes the White Witch. Daniel Craig takes on the role of Digory’s uncle, Andrew Ketterley.
Aslan is also part of the backstory. The trailer shows the cosmic lion during the creation of Narnia. In the English original, Meryl Streep lends her voice to the character.
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Music Plays an Important Role for Gerwig
Gerwig not only directs the film but also wrote the screenplay. According to her, she has been engaged with Narnia since her childhood.
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Music apparently played an important role. The first trailer is accompanied by Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” Gerwig told “Empire” that she wanted to create a kind of rock opera for Narnia. The world is created in Lewis’s story through Aslan’s song, which is why rock ‘n’ roll fits this idea for her. However, the film does not become an actual rock opera.
Netflix Brings Narnia to Theaters First
The release is also unusual. Instead of adding the film directly to the streaming lineup, Netflix is first bringing “The Magician’s Nephew” to theaters. The company has announced February 12, 2027, as the worldwide release date. IMAX previews are planned starting February 10, 2027. The film will appear on Netflix on April 2, 2027.
Netflix’s high expectations for the film are also reflected in the budget. According to the news agency “AP,” the production costs $280 million, making it one of the company’s most ambitious films. Netflix secured the rights to the “Narnia” works back in 2018.
Whether Gerwig does justice to the fantasy epic remains to be seen. At least in the comments on YouTube, the first trailer is mostly well-received.