Greta Gerwig has landed a historic agreement with Netflix to allow a theatrical release of her Narnia adaptation before it heads to streaming.
The first of the Oscar-nominated director’s two-part film series — based on C.S. Lewis’ classic fantasy books — has officially been granted an exclusive two-week run in Imax theaters next November.
Narnia’s worldwide Imax launch is scheduled to begin on Thanksgiving Day 2026, before it moves to Netflix on Christmas Day 2026.
The streamer rarely grants theatrical releases for its movies, as it’s typically preferred that they debut on the platform, according to Variety. Exceptions typically include Oscar hopefuls such as Emilia Pérez and Maria, both of which had short runs in theaters in the weeks leading up to their respective November 13 and November 27 Netflix release dates.
In 2022, the streaming giant permitted Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery to run in more than 600 theaters for a week, making it Netflix’s broadest theatrical release to date.
Netflix announced in 2018 its plans to develop a new set of projects based on the seven-book series, The Chronicles of Narnia.
“C.S. Lewis’ beloved Chronicles of Narnia stories have resonated with generations of readers around the world,” said Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s chief content officer, at the time. “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.”
Published between 1950 to 1956, Lewis’ bestselling book series chronicles the adventures of various children who are transported into the fictional world of Narnia.
Three of the seven titles have been adapted for the big screen, including The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005), Prince Caspian (2008) and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010).
Gerwig became attached to the new project in 2020, the same year her critically acclaimed Little Women adaptation was nominated for several Oscars. Before that, her solo directorial debut, Lady Bird (2017), also earned numerous Oscar nods.
She has since continued to blaze trails in the film industry. In 2023, her Barbie comedy, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, raked in over $1bn at the box office, making her the highest-grossing female director of all time.
