Disney’s two Narnia movies cost $180 million and $225 million. Netflix’s The Magician’s Nephew reportedly tops both, and insiders are already worried about how it’s turning out.
Narnia has been expensive before. Never this expensive, apparently.
Greta Gerwig’s Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew had a $280 million production budget, cinematographer Seamus McGarvey said on a podcast, World of Reel reported. If that number holds, it’s more than any of the three earlier Narnia movies cost.
The Netflix movie hits theaters Friday, Feb. 12, 2027, with IMAX previews starting Feb. 10, according to What’s on Netflix. It gets a 49-day run in theaters before it streams on Netflix on April 2, 2027.
“I cannot wait for people to see the film in theaters on February 12 and on Netflix on April 2,” Gerwig said in a statement.
The first trailer arrived Tuesday, Oct. 13. Here it is, from Netflix:
How much did Disney’s Narnia movies cost?
Less, but not by a ton. Here’s how the three earlier movies did, with budgets from Box Office Mojo and worldwide grosses from The Numbers:
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005): $180 million budget, $720.5 million worldwide
Prince Caspian (2008): $225 million budget, $417.3 million worldwide
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010): $155 million budget, $418.2 million worldwide
Disney released the first two with Walden Media. 20th Century Fox put out Dawn Treader.
Why did Disney drop the Narnia movies?
Money. In December 2008, Disney decided not to co-produce or co-finance Dawn Treader for “budgetary and logistical reasons,” The Hollywood Reporter said at the time, as Christianity Today reported.
Prince Caspian had made far less than The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, while costing more. Fox stepped in for the third movie.
When Disney bought 20th Century Fox’s film studio in 2019, Dawn Treader came along with it. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe gets its first 4K release on Dec. 15, as we reported this week.
Is Disney involved in Netflix’s Narnia movie?
No. Netflix bought the rights to all seven Narnia books from The C.S. Lewis Company in October 2018, and every movie and series from that deal is a Netflix production, What’s on Netflix reported.
The Magician’s Nephew is produced by Mark Gordon, Amy Pascal and Vincent Sieber.
Why is Greta Gerwig’s Narnia controversial?
Reports of trouble behind the scenes. Netflix film chief Dan Lin and Gerwig have clashed over the movie, Jeff Sneider’s newsletter The InSneider reported, according to World of Reel.
One source told Sneider that people at Netflix think the movie is “awful.” That source called it “a genuine problem.” A second source who saw a test screening over the summer compared it to Disney’s A Wrinkle in Time, World of Reel said.
That screening reportedly led to reshoots. One source also said the characters don’t get to Narnia until the third act. All of those reports rely on unnamed sources.
The trailer has people talking, too. It’s set to Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” and the story moves from the book’s Victorian London to the 1950s, World of Reel noted. The trailer had more than 53 million views on Netflix’s YouTube channel by Friday.
Who is in Greta Gerwig’s Narnia?
David McKenna plays Digory and Beatrice Campbell plays Polly, according to What’s on Netflix. Emma Mackey is the White Witch, Carey Mulligan plays Digory’s mother, Mabel, and Daniel Craig plays Uncle Andrew.
Meryl Streep voices Aslan, as we reported in September, and Ciaran Hinds is in the cast too. Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt wrote the score, and the movie is aiming for a PG rating, World of Reel reported.
Can Gerwig’s Narnia make its money back?
That’s the big question. Only The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe topped $420 million worldwide, and it did it with a budget about $100 million smaller.
Gerwig has beaten doubters before. Barbie had its own editing room worries at Warner Bros., and it went on to gross $1.4 billion, World of Reel pointed out.
The difference this time is the price tag. That wardrobe is getting awfully pricey.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Hat Tips:
World of Reel (Oct. 13 and 14, 2026), the budget, The InSneider’s report and the trailer
What’s on Netflix, Ashley Hurst (May 1, 2026), release dates, cast and producers
What’s on Netflix, Kasey Moore (Oct. 27, 2025), the 2018 rights deal
Box Office Mojo and The Numbers, Narnia budgets and box office
Christianity Today (Dec. 25, 2008), Disney’s exit
Netflix on YouTube (Oct. 13, 2026), the trailer
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