Netflix Drops First Narnia: The Magician's Nephew Trailer After Teasing It Online

Netflix Canada posted a short teaser image on Monday for Narnia: The Magician's Nephew, announcing that the first trailer for the film would be released the following day. The post carried the line "NARNIA: THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW. Trailer tomorrow." alongside a promotional poster for the movie.

The film is directed by Greta Gerwig, who also wrote the screenplay. It is the first screen adaptation of C. S. Lewis's 1955 novel The Magician's Nephew, the sixth book published in The Chronicles of Narnia series but the first in chronological order. The novel depicts the creation of Narnia and the arrival of the White Witch, events that precede those of the more widely adapted The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Netflix has not said what time on Tuesday the trailer will arrive. Trade outlet What's on Netflix reported that it is expected around 2 p.m. Eastern, though that timing has not been confirmed by Netflix itself.

A long theatrical window

The film is scheduled for release in IMAX and in theatres worldwide on February 12, 2027, with IMAX-only sneak previews beginning February 10. It then streams on Netflix on April 2, 2027. That arrangement gives the film a theatrical run of roughly seven weeks before its streaming debut.

Netflix has previously said the release is intended as a theatrical event. In announcing the dates, the company said the film would "release in IMAX and wide globally in theaters on February 12, 2027, and on Netflix on April 2, 2027."

The schedule represents a significant shift from the original plan. The film had been set for a Thanksgiving 2026 release on roughly 1,000 IMAX screens, followed by a Netflix debut on December 25, 2026. Netflix moved it into 2027 to secure a conventional wide theatrical run. It would be the first film from Netflix to receive a wide theatrical release, and its first to hold an exclusive cinema window of that length.

Netflix is handling distribution in North America. Sony Pictures Entertainment is distributing the film internationally, an arrangement announced in June 2026. The film will not receive a theatrical release in France, where it will premiere on Netflix on April 2.

Cast and production

David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell star as Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer, the two child characters at the centre of the novel. Emma Mackey plays Jadis, who becomes the White Witch, and Carey Mulligan plays Mabel Kirke, Digory's mother. Ciaran Hinds, Daniel Craig and Meryl Streep also appear, alongside Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough and Susan Wokoma.

Streep's casting was confirmed in May 2026 and drew comment at the time over the character she voices. Reports indicate she voices Aslan, the lion who creates Narnia in the story.

The film is produced by Mark Gordon, Amy Pascal, Vincent Sieber-Smith and Gerwig, with Christine Crais as co-producer. Patricia Whitcher, Douglas Gresham and Melvin Adams are executive producers for the C. S. Lewis Estate. Seamus McGarvey is cinematographer, Jacqueline Durran is costume designer, and Nick Houy and Andrew Weisblum are the editors.

Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt composed the original score, reuniting with Gerwig after their work on Barbie. George Drakoulias is music supervisor. Principal photography began on August 11, 2025, with filming at Shepperton Studios and locations including London and Manchester, and wrapped on January 31, 2026.

Gerwig has described the project as a long-held personal one. "I was a child when I first read The Magician's Nephew, and I fell in love with the gorgeously improbable but completely brilliant concept of a cosmic lion singing the world of Narnia to life," she said in Netflix's announcement. "I didn't know that I would grow up to make films, but a universe built out of music is an idea that always lived in my heart."

The books behind it

The Magician's Nephew was published on May 2, 1955. Its opening line introduces the premise: the book "shows how all the comings and goings between our own world and the land of Narnia first began."

The seven Narnia novels have sold more than 120 million copies and been translated into more than 60 languages, according to Netflix. Three film adaptations were produced by Walden Media between 2005 and 2010 before the rights moved on. This is the fourth Narnia film and the first since The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in 2010.

The C. S. Lewis Company said in a statement that it is "so excited for audiences everywhere to experience her vision — and to share the magic of Narnia with a whole new generation."

Sources

Netflix Tudum, "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew Will Roar to Life with Global Eventized Release in 2027" (June 16, 2026); Netflix Canada official Facebook post (October 12, 2026); What's on Netflix; Variety; IGN; Wikipedia, "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew" and "The Chronicles of Narnia (film series)".