Greta Gerwig’s Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew has moved to 2027, with Netflix confirming the fantasy adaptation will now receive a wide theatrical release worldwide. The film will open in IMAX and in cinemas on 12 February 2027, following sneak previews exclusively in IMAX from 10 February, before arriving on Netflix on 2 April 2027.
The change moves the film away from its previously planned November 2026 slot, when it had been expected to receive a shorter IMAX run before landing on Netflix at Christmas. The new plan gives Narnia a much bigger cinema moment, with the film now set to play theatrically before its streaming debut. For Netflix, which has often kept theatrical releases limited or awards-focused, this feels like a significant shift in strategy.
Directed and written by Gerwig, Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew brings C.S. Lewis’s beloved story to the screen for the first time. Netflix’s press materials describe the film as “a sweeping adventure” that invites dreamers of all ages to experience the creation of Narnia.
First published in 1955, The Magician’s Nephew is the origin story of The Chronicles of Narnia series and depicts the creation of Lewis’s magical realm. Although it was the sixth book published, it is the first chronologically, showing how the journeys between our world and Narnia began and leading into the events of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
The confirmed cast includes newcomers David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell, alongside Emma Mackey, Carey Mulligan, Ciarán Hinds, Daniel Craig, Meryl Streep, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough and Susan Wokoma.
Gerwig writes, directs and produces the film, with Mark Gordon, Amy Pascal and Vincent Sieber-Smith also producing. The wider creative team includes original score by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, cinematography by Seamus McGarvey, production design by James Chinlund, costume design by Jacqueline Durran, and casting by Nina Gold.
Production on the film has also had a major UK footprint, with filming primarily based at Shepperton Studios in Surrey and location shooting previously spotted in central London. It marks Gerwig’s second major UK-shot studio film after Barbie, which filmed at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden before going on to become a box-office phenomenon.
Gerwig said working with Netflix on the film had been “extraordinary”, adding that IMAX had continued to be an “incredible partner” on the project. She also reflected on reading The Magician’s Nephew as a child, describing the image of “a cosmic lion singing the world of Narnia to life” as an idea that stayed with her long before she became a filmmaker.
The C.S. Lewis Company also praised Gerwig’s approach, saying it was “incredibly moving” to see how deeply she had embraced Lewis’s world and infused Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew with “joy, heart and genuine love for the story.”
For CultureCues, this feels like a smart move from Netflix and a very welcome one. Narnia has never really been a small-screen idea. It has always been built for wonder, from the creation of the world itself to the idea that an ordinary child could step into something vast and enchanted. With Gerwig’s version now getting a proper theatrical window, Netflix seems to be treating it with the scale and ceremony the material deserves.
There is also something fitting about Narnia being made in the UK before heading out as a global cinema release. C.S. Lewis’s world has always carried that strange mix of rainy British childhood and mythic wonder, where an ordinary room, street or doorway can suddenly open onto something impossible. If Gerwig brings even a fraction of the visual imagination, emotional precision and crowd-pleasing confidence she brought to Barbie, Netflix could have one of its biggest cinematic moments yet.
Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew arrives in cinemas on 12 February 2027 and streams on Netflix from 2 April 2027.
Nikki Murray is a UK-based writer, screenwriter and founder & editor of CultureCues, covering film, television, music and pop culture. Her work focuses on storytelling, emerging voices and the cultural moments shaping modern entertainment.