Greta Gerwig’s Narnia Reboot Is Already Avoiding a Major Franchise Failure

Since the publication of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in 1950, the world of Narnia has been adapted over and over again. In the decades immediately preceding the book’s release, television programs based on the novel were created, airing in 1967, 1979, and 1988. Throughout the 1980s and into the 2000s, London staged theatrical renditions of the novel, and kids in the 2000s fondly remember the theatrical films produced by Disney and Walden Media. 

Overwhelmingly, Narnia adaptations have centered on the Pevensie children, the protagonists of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Audiences watched the children grow up and age out of Narnia, with the magical Aslan telling Lucy in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader that if she leaves, she will not be able to return. 

The sixth novel of The Chronicles of Narnia, The Magician’s Nephew, was originally supposed to be adapted following The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but was postponed due to a lapsed contract with the Lewis estate. In 2018, Netflix announced an agreement with the C.S. Lewis company to make a new franchise based on The Chronicles of Narnia. Netflix would later announce the first Narnia film, The Magician’s Nephew, and its director, Greta Gerwig, differentiating the film from countless re-adaptations of the same media, a common failure.

Adapting Material that Feels Fresh

Given the popularity of the Chronicles of Narnia films from the 2000s, adapting the series again was always going to be a challenge. The choice to adapt The Magician’s Nephew differentiates the film while leaving the door open to find a new take on The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in addition to the books that didn’t get film adaptations.

The Magician’s Nephew, although published after the majority of the Chronicles of Narnia books, is intended as a prequel and sets up locations not seen in the original franchise. A good portion of the novel takes place in the Woods Between Worlds, and Charn, a world that has been destroyed by Jadis, a power-hungry woman who in the future will become the White Witch. While the famous wardrobe isn’t the method of magic in The Magician’s Nephew, that isn’t to say the novel is without fantastical elements.

The Magician’s Nephew still contains magic through portals and rings that take Diggory and Polly — the novel’s protagonists — between their world and Charn. Still, even with this magic, the novel feels closer to reality than the other ones. For its majority, there isn’t talking animals. Gerwig already cast Meryl Streep as Aslan, so we know she’ll make an appearance even though Aslan is barely present in The Magician’s Nephew.

Depending on Gerwig’s take on the novel, audiences could see a more sympathetic Jadis. After all, Jadis put herself into an enchanted sleep after destroying everything in her world. Perhaps there’s more to her than a quest for power. Perhaps there isn’t, and Gerwig will lean into Jadis’s villainy and elevate the character’s theatrical tendencies. Given the stated Bowie influences for the new film, it wouldn’t be a surprise.

Moving it Forward in Time

While the Chronicles of Narnia books were published in the 1950s, the books themselves take place in the early 1900s, with the Pevensies sent away because of the Blitz in London during World War II. The Magician’s Nephew, as a prequel, should take place even earlier. Gerwig has confirmed that this will not be the time period of The Magician’s Nephew; however, choosing instead to set the film in post-war Britain. 

Moving it forward in time allows for the cultural context of the ‘60s and ‘70s British rock music scene, which Gerwig attributes as a big influence on her Narnia. Gerwig has described Narnia as a world made from music, and it will be interesting to see how that translates to the setting that existed prior to Aslan’s intervention. 

Stand Alone, but Open for Continuation

With its status as a prequel, The Magician’s Nephew is its own story that leads into the rest of the Chronicles of Narnia books but isn’t dependent on them. The 2023 announcement that tied Gerwig to the project confirmed she would be writing and directing two films based on the Chronicles of Narnia books. The first film is obviously The Magician’s Nephew, with only speculation currently as to what the second film could be. 

If Gerwig doesn’t want to touch the previous movies, she could adapt The Horse and His Boy, which is a standalone set during the Pevensie rule. Otherwise, it seems unlikely that she would not be treading some familiar ground. Still, perhaps the setting change could be distinct enough to set the films apart and give Gerwig’s films a unique feel. 

Are you excited for The Magician’s Nephew? Do you have any guesses for the second film in Gerwig’s Narnia? Let us know in the comments!

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