The fourth anniversary of Netflix acquiring the rights to adapt new Chronicles of Narnia movies and series will be in 2022. We’ve had one major announcement and a lot of nothing since then. As of April 2022, here’s everything we know about Netflix’s The Chronicles of Narnia adaptations. Before we get into Netflix’s involvement in the future, let’s go over the book series and how it’s been adapted in the past.
The fantasy book series transports us to the made-up country of Narnia. Seven books in total were released under the Chronicles of Narnia moniker. Over the years, the series has undergone numerous adaptations, including a BBC series, a radio series, and of course, the Disney films.
The biggest film adaptation of the book series was the 2005 release of “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” by Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media. The company subsequently released a second movie, which was distributed by Disney, and a third film, which was distributed by 20th Century Fox. Although it was intended, a fourth film was never produced.
When and how did Netflix acquire the Narnia franchise?
The collaboration between Netflix and The C.S. Lewis Company was announced in October 2018. Netflix has a “multi-year deal” in which it will have multiple film and series projects in the works, all based solely on the Narnia books.
Along with the original announcement, Ted Sarandos, now co-CEO of Netflix, stated, “C.S. Lewis’ beloved Chronicles of Narnia stories have resonated with generations of readers around the world,” adding, “Families have fallen in love with characters like Aslan and the entire world of Narnia, and we’re thrilled to be their home for years to come.”
The fact that Netflix would be turning Narnia into a universe was also often emphasised, positioning the television show to compete with series like Game of Thrones and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, albeit for a more family-friendly audience. On the official Narnia Facebook post, you may read more of the original press release, but these are its important points:
“Netflix will create new television shows and movie projects based on the cherished The Chronicles of Narnia books by C.S. Lewis. In accordance with the conditions of a multi-year agreement, Netflix will adapt well-known tales from the Narnia realm into television shows and motion pictures for its subscribers all around the world.
With Mark Gordon of Entertainment One (eOne), Douglas Gresham, and Vincent Sieber serving as executive producers for series and producers for features, all shows and movies created as part of the partnership will be Netflix productions.
The fact that Netflix has access to all seven books is the most significant feature of the agreement, making it more special than anything that has gone before. This suggests that later works that have never been adapted could eventually be available on Netflix, something that previous owners of the licence haven’t been allowed to achieve. We are aware that Mark Gordon, Douglas Gresham, and Vincent Sieber will work on the majority of the upcoming Netflix Narnia projects (thanks to IMDbPro).
Where will the Netflix series The Chronicles of Narnia begin?
The logical beginning of Narnia is The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. The Magician’s Nephew, a book that serves as the prequel and further develops the world of Narnia, would be a more sensible place for Netflix to begin the universe. Below, you can listen to a conversation from the Narniaweb podcast where they think that starting with Magician’s Nephew this time would make sense. This would imply that Netflix would adapt the books in the following order, known as the “Harper Collins” order:
The Magician’s Nephew
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Horse and His Boy
Prince Caspian
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Last Battle.
Also speculating that their versions would be a little darker, the Narniaweb guys They specifically compared them to the Netflix series Anne with an E, which was significantly darker than the original source material. Lucy from the Disney franchise, who spoke with Georgie Henley in April 2020, said she’d be open to appearing in the Netflix reboot but acknowledged it’s probably unlikely.
What Narnia-related projects are being worked on
The first three Narnia-related Netflix productions are listed on Matthew Alrich’s page. The projects are listed below along with an estimated stage of development:
The untitled Netflix/Chronicles of Narnia series is said to be the farthest advanced in development, having allegedly started pre-production in October 2018.
As of October 2018, an untitled Netflix/Chronicles of Narnia TV movie was listed as being in pre-production.
The Magician’s Nephew from The Narnia Chronicles (Treatment stage but expected to be an old project)
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair (the final Disney film, which was cancelled, is not anticipated to be made)