Greta Gerwig ’s Narnia is not quite the one readers may remember from C.S. Lewis’s books. The first trailer for Narnia : The Magician’s Nephew offers a glimpse of a fantasy world shaped by music, strange magic and a rather unexpected rock ’n’ roll influence.
The cast of Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew
The supporting cast includes Ciarán Hinds, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough and Susan Wokoma.
Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, who previously collaborated with Gerwig on Barbie, are also working with her on the film’s music.
Unlike the early 1900s setting of Lewis’s novel, Gerwig’s adaptation takes place in 1955, the year the book was published. Set photographs showing vintage cars, double-decker buses and a variety poster dated August 5, 1955, have offered a glimpse of the world in which the story unfolds. Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew will open in IMAX and theatres worldwide on February 12, 2027, with exclusive IMAX previews beginning February 10. The film will stream on Netflix from April 2.
The trailer’s most striking choice is its use of Stairway to Heaven. Led Zeppelin’s iconic song plays against glimpses of a world that feels both familiar and new, suggesting that music will be central to Gerwig’s interpretation of Lewis’s fantasy. The film marks the first time the band has licensed the song for a movie. Another major talking point is Aslan. Voiced by Meryl Streep , the great lion appears as a cosmic presence, with differently coloured eyes and red markings inspired by David Bowie. The trailer shows him taking on his powerful lion form against a backdrop of stars, with Stairway to Heaven accompanying the transformation. The film’s period setting is another detail worth noting. Greta has spoken about how the book stayed with her long before she became a filmmaker. The idea of an entire universe being brought to life through music was something she never forgot.
Gerwig reportedly met Robert Plant and Jimmy Page to seek permission, and they agreed because they “recognized the heart in the story”.
