It looks like Greta Gerwig is now the "Creative Architect" of Netflix's Narnia, but back in June 2019, Matthew Aldrich was brought on board for this job, landing a 3-year exclusive deal with Netflix.
So... what happened during these four years? And what is happening now?
Here's my theory, based on tidbits that I've picked up over the years as a news poster (and obsessive person 
).
But here's some background first...
Early on after Matthew Aldrich entered the picture, we had a few reasons to believe that they were focusing on making feature films first. For one thing, Aldrich had only ever scripted films, and there were a few references to feature films by executives and agents related to the project in the first year or so.
However, by the year 2021, something seemed to have switched gears: it was discovered that Matthew Aldrich had recently attended the WGA's Showrunner Training Program. Attending this program meant that he had an actual script for a pilot episode, and this script was presumably for Narnia.
Additionally, we also now know that Greta Gerwig was talking about doing Narnia before making Barbie. She signed on to write the script for Barbie in July 2019, and finally signed on to direct Barbie in July 2021. Scott Stuber, Netflix's Head of Film, says he's been talking with her since Little Women, but we don't know exactly when the discussion about Narnia began — only that it began before making Barbie.
So, what exactly was going on with Aldrich, Gerwig, and Netflix during this time?
We might have a little bit of extra insight from Matthew Aldrich.
In June of this year, Aldrich published an article about the use of AI in scriptwriting, and it included a very interesting line:
The director might want something in the script that I vehemently disagree with. The studio could demand ten pages be cut, or that the feature film I’d been working on for nine months be re-broken as a 8-part TV series (true story).
(Emphasis mine.)
It's possible he was referring to some other project, but considering that (to my knowledge) Aldrich had never worked on a television series before, and considering that he attended the WGA program in (probably) early 2021 after prior indications that Netflix was starting with a feature film, I think it's pretty likely he's referring to Narnia here.
Now, if I may read between the lines of all of this, and enter the realm of speculation...
I think the initial plan, before Gerwig entered the picture, was to do a feature film adaptation of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. This is the most famous story, and it features recurring characters/actors that can drive interest in the following stories. A film was also less expensive than a series at a time when Netflix was becoming more budget-conscious. It's the safe and obvious choice for reboot-obsessed Hollywood.
However, when Greta Gerwig began talking with Netflix about Narnia at some point between 2019 and 2021... I think she really impressed Netflix with her ideas and passion, but I don't think she wanted to direct LWW. Instead, I think the "at least two movies" she's been talking to Netflix about are The Magician's Nephew and The Horse and His Boy.
Why?
*puts on Sherlock Holmes hat*
Because Matthew Aldrich was (IMO) suddenly asked to turn his script for LWW into an 8-part TV series.
Here's my logic...
HHB has always been a difficult movie to include because sandwiching HHB in between LWW and PC will cause major problems with child actors aging.
No matter where you put it, it disrupts the chronological flow because it technically takes place within LWW.
So, if Gerwig expressed interest in doing these two books, it makes sense that Netflix would ask Aldrich to convert his script for LWW into a television series, because it could follow Gerwig's film adaptation of MN and precede her film adaptation of HHB. This would be the beginning of a Pevensie-focused television series, which could film concurrently with HHB if needed.
I think THIS is why Aldrich was attending the WGA program in early 2021.
You might be wondering: why would Matthew Aldrich be rewriting his script and attending the WGA program for LWW, if Gerwig was going to be tied up with Barbie for years before she would be able to even start on MN?
Gerwig and Baumbach wrote the script for Barbie in 2020 and 2021, but Gerwig didn't decide that she wanted to direct it until after finishing the script. Since we know she was already talking about Narnia before Barbie, it's quite possible she was deciding between these two projects. Gerwig finally signed on to direct Barbie in July 2021, likely after a lot of this discussion was taking place.
Both Mark Gordon and Scott Stuber also commented on Narnia in November 2020 and January 2021, so there was some sort of plan taking shape — a plan that appears to have been massively delayed, because we didn't hear anything else from Netflix for more than two years after that.
I think it's very probable they were waiting for Gerwig to be done with Barbie before moving ahead on Narnia.
But as far as Matthew Aldrich goes: his exclusive contract with Netflix expired in June 2022, and he appears to have moved on to other projects. I'm guessing he wasn't interested in waiting around for Gerwig to be finished with Barbie, or the project just wasn't a great fit for him anymore. Or maybe he'll be back in a year or two! Who knows.
Anyway, to sum it all up, this is what I think is Netflix's current plan for Narnia:
1. MN (feature film directed by Greta Gerwig)
2. LWW (series directed by someone else)
3. HHB (feature film directed by Greta Gerwig)
4. PC (series directed by someone else)
5. VDT (series directed by someone else)
6. SC (feature film directed by Greta Gerwig?)
7. LB (feature film directed by Greta Gerwig?)
If I'm right, it's no wonder she feels like she's in the Wood Between the Worlds! That's a massive project, especially if she's going to be creatively involved with the television series, too.
What do you think? Any gaps in my logic or recall? If I sound a little unhinged, I probably am: I think it drove me slightly crazy for Matthew Aldrich to be hired as the Creative Architect and we didn't hear one word from him about Narnia for THREE YEARS. So many Google searches in vain. 
Writing this out is so therapeutic for me. 
But I could be completely wrong! Or maybe this was the plan at one point, but it's not what they're doing anymore. Hopefully we'll find out soon!
(Whew, this ended up a bit longer than I thought. 
)
Those are interesting theories! Though I have wondered that if Greta is only going to direct two Narnia films, would the other ones (if they all end up being feature length movies) be going through different directors. I know that a lot of movie franchises go through a lot of different directors, so it shouldn't be a surprise.
I don't know if I can see Greta Gerwig doing The Last Battle, because that's a very complex book, perhaps the most complex. Then there's the issue of Susan being no longer a friend of Narnia. There's usually that concern among Narnia fans is that how are they going to address that.
I am waiting to see how Greta Gerwig's final projects of the Narnia films turns out. I'm not sure if there's any theory of my own that I could think of. But all those ones sure sounds interesting!
"And this is the marvel of marvels, that he called me beloved."
(Emeth, The Last Battle)
Posted : November 12, 2023 8:58 pm
The Rose-Tree Dryad liked
That's an interesting theory, though i think there needs to be a stronger justification in there of why specifically HHB in particular would be so important to Greta Gerwig (i.e. I can see that the fact that the villains are a male-dominated patriarchal society would potentially be a big appeal to her, but for me the inevitable ethno-cultural aspects of that debate would be a whole bee's nest of controversy that I could see her steering well clear of).
Overall, I think there are probably simpler theories about the pivot from Movies back to TV.
Since i wrote this piece for NarniaWeb at the very deepest darkest point of the "no-news drought", we've suddenly seen more progress on Narnia... But that has also coincided with more changes behind the scenes at Netflix, and more changes to the rapidly evolving streaming landscape in general.
Take this recent quote from Scott Stuber, where he specifically admits that the previous "quantity over quality" approach taken by Netflix during the last 4 years (i.e. the Narnia News Drought Era) was a mistake:
https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/netflix-bad-movies.html
Therefore if I was looking for a reason for them pivoting from movies back to TV for Narnia, I would probably be looking at the financial failures of alot of their movie outputs over the last 4.years, and the financial successes of their TV outputs over the last 4.years - in particular things like Stranger Things (itself a lasting monument from the old old regime at Netflix).
I think you can also potentially see this "corporate rebound" in Netflix's Strategy playing out with their Road Dahl franchise... Their first entry was a fairly bland but inoffensive adaptation of the Matilda Musical filmed in 2021, which they also released in cinemas, but made almost no money, before dropping on streaming a few months later and disappeared into the cultural vacuum.... However, their most recent Dahl adaptations were of 3 relatively obscure short stories which they gave to acclaimed auteur director Wes Anderson, who directed them in the most quintessential Wes Anderson manner, gaining them alot of critical acclaim in the process.
Whilst Greta Gerwig doesn't quite have the same signature visual style as Anderson, she definitely falls into the same category of indie director, and therefore I'd be very willing to connect the dots between Netflix hiring her for Narnia and Anderson for Dahl as being an indicative keystone of Netflix's new approach.
Posted : November 13, 2023 1:25 am
The Rose-Tree Dryad liked
Your theory is certainly an interesting one Rose.
But the first thing I'm going to challenge is the assumption that each book is being translated into one individual project, and that Gerwig is adapting two separate books into movies. I don't have any specific evidence Netflix:Narnia news to back this suggestion up, but if Aldrich was adapting MN, wouldn't his quote still work if Netflix was like "no, no, we want our first big movie to be 'Magician's Nephew: The Wood Between the Worlds,' followed by 'Magician's Nephew: The Creation of Narnia,' and the TV series on the side to be 'Charn: The Rise of Jadis'!" He gives up and leaves and Gerwig picks up where he left off, regardless of whatever she was originally going to do.
But that type of worldbuilding is what other film companies are doing with their hit series and I guess that's what I'm expecting from Netflix for Narnia as well.
2. LWW (series directed by someone else)
This is the part that's especially tripping me up. All of us here on NarniaWeb really, REALLY want to see a different book adapted to film. I think that's why many of us are guilty of leaning toward some other book besides LWW being the first one Netflix puts out.
But the more I think about it, the more I can't ignore the large amount of time that has passed since Walden:Narnia. We have a whole new generation of viewers. I really believe LWW needs to be their flagship movie because it's the most well known story of the series, the most popular (in terms of sales), and (imho) one of the better book-to-film stories. I don't know if Netflix plans to release any of their Narnia projects in movie theaters, but if they do, and they shove LWW off to the side as a series, that would be some kind of kamikaze financial move.
Posted : November 13, 2023 4:12 pm
The Rose-Tree Dryad liked
Therefore if I was looking for a reason for them pivoting from movies back to TV for Narnia, I would probably be looking at the financial failures of alot of their movie outputs over the last 4.years, and the financial successes of their TV outputs over the last 4.years - in particular things like Stranger Things (itself a lasting monument from the old old regime at Netflix).
Yes, and the article you found is a good one, but I'm talking about why Matthew Aldrich attended the WGA training program in January 2021. That means that the plan seems to have changed by late 2020 at least — a long time ago! If anything, Netflix's commitment to big name, big budget films at the time makes the choice to pivot to television for Narnia even more puzzling (but not so puzzling if they were thinking about making MN with Gerwig instead, with LWW to follow as a series).
Whilst Greta Gerwig doesn't quite have the same signature visual style as Anderson, she definitely falls into the same category of indie director, and therefore I'd be very willing to connect the dots between Netflix hiring her for Narnia and Anderson for Dahl as being an indicative keystone of Netflix's new approach.
That's a good observation!
if Aldrich was adapting MN, wouldn't his quote still work if Netflix was like "no, no, we want our first big movie to be 'Magician's Nephew: The Wood Between the Worlds,' followed by 'Magician's Nephew: The Creation of Narnia,' and the TV series on the side to be 'Charn: The Rise of Jadis'!" He gives up and leaves and Gerwig picks up where he left off, regardless of whatever she was originally going to do.
For sure, but the theory I'm sharing here is assuming that Greta Gerwig was talking with Netflix about Narnia before Aldrich attended the WGA program.
These are the two recent quotes we have that give us some inkling of the timeline for Gerwig's involvement with this project:
"[Narnia is] something I was actually talking about before I made Barbie. So, that’s been sort of in my unconscious working its way through. But that has been a pattern. I wrote a draft of Little Women before I made Lady Bird." —Greta Gerwig
"Greta’s been a friend for a while. Her husband, [director] Noah Baumbach, we’re close to, we’ve made I think three films. We’re starting another one. We have a big deal with them. [...] When we had [2019’s] ‘Marriage Story’ and she had ‘Little Women,’ we all spent quite a bit of time on the awards trail together at dinners. [Gerwig] grew up in a Christian background. The C.S. Lewis books are very much based in Christianity. And so we just started talking about it." —Scott Stuber
Looking at these, I think Stuber's quote makes it sound like Gerwig first talked to Netflix executives about Narnia when she was at dinners on the awards trail for Little Women, which would have been early 2020.
And honestly, if Gerwig had an interest in doing Narnia, she would have needed to go ahead and say something to Netflix about it because they were making other plans at the time. So the conversation beginning at some point in 2020 seems reasonable to me.
I don't know if Netflix plans to release any of their Narnia projects in movie theaters, but if they do, and they shove LWW off to the side as a series, that would be some kind of kamikaze financial move.
I can see how a non-theatrical release might feel like a step down, but when I think of Netflix's most successful, famous projects, what comes to mind is series like Stranger Things and Squid Game. And like @icarus said above, Netflix seems to be cooling the focus on movie productions in favor of series at this stage. Also, considering that Stranger Things is ending in the next few years, I think Netflix would definitely be interested in doing a flagship Pevensie-based series.
Topic starter
Posted : November 13, 2023 8:09 pm
tbh - If that is describing Narnia, then I think it's likely that it played out something like this.
- Netflix plans a massive multi-media Narnia franchise but doesn't want to be stuck with exclusively just movies or TV shows.
- They hire Matthew Aldrich as the person who can oversee the story and make it consistent between the various hypothetical films, shows, spinoffs, games, etc.
- News goes dead as Netflix and Aldrich go back and forth on various ideas for which books should be made into what and when. Clearly, the plan is for the first instalment to be a movie
- Since it's clear that their expensive blockbusters don't do that well* Netflix decides to pivot the Narnia stuff to just TV. They clearly have more success there than with film, and youth-aimed shows are among their most popular original dramas.
- Aldrich, therefore, changes his initial "let's start this franchise off with a bang" movie script into an 8-part TV show.
- Netflix finds out that extremely in-demand director Greta Gerwig wants to take a crack at adapting Narnia, but only if she's allowed to do it her way, with her own team. They pass.
- Months go by. At this point, there's clearly not been a lot of forward movement with the project in a while.
- Maybe the pressure of slotting into an untested pre-planned multi-media franchise is turning off potential A-listers like Gerwig? Or maybe it's having to answer to a relatively unproven, unknown like Aldrich? Either way, something's gotta give.
- After Aldrich leaves, a lot of backroom private negotiation goes on for months between Gerwig and Netflix, who understandably still want to retain as much control over this potential franchise, as possible.
- Barbie comes out, and suddenly the ball is very much in Gerwig's court. Every studio now wants her more than ever, and if she leaves, Netflix are basically back to square one, again...
*(despite what their own unverifiable numbers claim, stuff like Red Notice was obviously not a massive Avatar-level smash, lol)
Posted : November 14, 2023 12:31 am
Hey @LentenLands! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, that's an interesting breakdown.
- Since it's clear that their expensive blockbusters don't do that well* Netflix decides to pivot the Narnia stuff to just TV. They clearly have more success there than with film, and youth-aimed shows are among their most popular original dramas.
*(despite what their own unverifiable numbers claim, stuff like Red Notice was obviously not a massive Avatar-level smash, lol)
Red Notice didn't come out until November 2021, though, and Aldrich attended the WGA showrunner program in January 2021. The Gray Man, another of Netflix's big budget, big name movies, wouldn't come out until July 2022, either. It's possible that Netflix decided independently to change strategies with Narnia against Aldrich's wishes (if what he wrote on Medium was indeed referring to Narnia!), but it wasn't because of the viewership numbers for those particular movies.
And thinking back, the decision for Aldrich to attend the showrunner program would actually have happened no later than September 2020, because that was the deadline for the application for the 2021 program...
(I have spent way too much time researching this production over the years. 
)
So, I guess the question is: would it have made sense for Netflix executives to suddenly decide to switch gears from films to series in 2020, based on what we know about the company's strategy and economic position at that time?
If Matthew Aldrich didn't want to re-break the script into a series, then there must have been someone at Netflix who believed that it was a good idea. But it's hard for me to account for the change in Netflix's attitude at that time, outside of a visionary like Gerwig getting involved and making the case for it.
- Months go by. At this point, there's clearly not been a lot of forward movement with the project in a while.
- Maybe the pressure of slotting into an untested pre-planned multi-media franchise is turning off potential A-listers like Gerwig? Or maybe it's having to answer to a relatively unproven, unknown like Aldrich? Either way, something's gotta give.
I didn't mention this in my original post, but there's some reason to believe that Aldrich may have no longer been active on the project by mid-2021, or that the entire production had entered hibernation for a while, or both. Beginning in May 2021, Aldrich made several lengthy guest appearances on a podcast about films (The Everything Sequel Podcast), and just in general did not seem like someone who was very busy with a massive project like Narnia. It's my opinion that he's not been very involved with Narnia since then (and of course, his contract expired in June 2022).
The fact that things seemed to power down so quickly after attending the WGA program is definitely interesting. If Netflix had parted ways with Aldrich over creative differences, you'd think they would have hired someone else to work on Narnia, but as far as I know, nothing. So waiting for Gerwig seems by far the most likely to me.
You know, we're still assuming that Netflix wants to make both movies and TV series out of the Narnia books. But it occurred to me recently that that was so long ago in the production process that maybe now they just want do movies.
For better or worse-for who knows what may unfold from a chrysalis?-hope was left behind.
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Posted : November 28, 2023 11:27 am
But it occurred to me recently that that was so long ago in the production process that maybe now they just want do movies.
I think that's an absolutely fair assumption based on everything we've heard recently about Netflix's recent pivots away from the strategy of the last 4 years. In fact, given how fast the streaming landscape is evolving from a business perspective, I'd just assume that any quote about strategic intent that is more than a few months old should likely be considered out-of-date unless its already been enacted.
For example, the current streaming trend seems to be a move towards producing more unscripted tv series, with Amazon doing a James Bond themed reality gameshow called "007: Road to a Million" and Netflix doing a Squid Game themed reality gameshow called "Squid Game: The Challenge". Doubtless both of these productions were in works long before the writers strike, and both are perhaps logical moves for both companies in trying to capture the full range of the TV market, not just the high-end "HBO market", but I would fully expect all the major streaming platforms to double-down on this sort of unscripted content in the aftermath of the writers strike, particularly if they can slap a big-name IP on the show like James Bond or Squid Game..... I'll just leave it to everyone here to imagine what the crass nightmare version of a Narnia themed Reality TV Game Show would look like 🤣
Posted : November 28, 2023 12:29 pm
I'll just leave it to everyone here to imagine what the crass nightmare version of a Narnia themed Reality TV Game Show would look like 🤣
Oh groan... the mind boggles. Dump some participants in a snow-covered region and have them evade the White Witch? Or how about being pursued through the desert by a Calormene army?? Or stranded on a VDT-style island with a real dragon... now there's a thought...
I agree though, it's so long since the original statement from Netflix that it's probably best not to assume anything holds unless it's been recently confirmed. We have been told — so far — that Greta Gerwig has been commissioned to do at least two Narnia movies, but there's no indication of whether they're now planning to do all seven books as movies, or some of them as multi-episode series, or what.
I was always surprised at Netflix's statement about making both movies and series, as I would have thought most production companies would do all of the books in the same format. The BBC did three six-episode series (counting PC (2 episodes) and VDT (4 episodes) as one series, which is how they were originally screened on TV), whereas Walden did three films. Doing different books in different formats would make the entire set of shows feel less unified, I reckon. But once again, it's still all speculation until we hear anything for sure.
"Now you are a lioness," said Aslan. "And now all Narnia will be renewed."
(Prince Caspian)
Posted : November 28, 2023 1:38 pm
Oh groan... the mind boggles. Dump some participants in a snow-covered region and have them evade the White Witch? Or how about being pursued through the desert by a Calormene army?? Or stranded on a VDT-style island with a real dragon... now there's a thought...
Well, I know there's been some concerns among Narnia fans (myself included) that a new Narnia movie could add too much action. So Rabadash and his army of Calormenes pursuing Shasta and Aravis in the desert in HHB or Rishda and his army of Calormenes pursuing Tirian, Eustace and Jill as they go rescue Jewel in LB? *Shuddered.* 
I know there's been talking about what books will be movies and which ones will be series. Well, anything can happen in a new Narnia movie or series: there could be some minor or even major imperfections. I for one is waiting to see what happens.
"And this is the marvel of marvels, that he called me beloved."
(Emeth, The Last Battle)
Posted : November 28, 2023 4:18 pm
You know, we're still assuming that Netflix wants to make both movies and TV series out of the Narnia books. But it occurred to me recently that that was so long ago in the production process that maybe now they just want do movies.
Well, we do know that Mark Gordon is still involved on the project, and his original plans involved series and films. Plus, there was that 3,000 characters/Game of Thrones comment. Of course, all of that is older information and may no longer reflect what Netflix wants to do, but it's also worth noting that both Amy Pascal and Mark Gordon work in feature films AND television series.
The only thing that I really expect, though, is for Netflix to not box themselves in one way or another. They have so little IP that is recognizable worldwide, and they're going to want to be careful with Narnia for that reason.
I'll just leave it to everyone here to imagine what the crass nightmare version of a Narnia themed Reality TV Game Show would look like 🤣
Oh groan... the mind boggles. Dump some participants in a snow-covered region and have them evade the White Witch?
... If the only people who can assist the contestants are the Beavers from the BBC LWW series, I would absolutely watch that. 
Topic starter
Posted : November 28, 2023 4:37 pm
Varnafinde and Col Klink liked
Well, we do know that Mark Gordon is still involved on the project, and his original plans involved series and films. Plus, there was that 3,000 characters/Game of Thrones comment. Of course, all of that is older information and may no longer reflect what Netflix wants to do, but it's also worth noting that both Amy Pascal and Mark Gordon work in feature films AND television series.
The only thing that I really expect, though, is for Netflix to not box themselves in one way or another. They have so little IP that is recognizable worldwide, and they're going to want to be careful with Narnia for that reason.
Good points — although when it comes to "IP that is recognisable worldwide", they have had some original shows that have been big worldwide hits, like The Crown. But I'm guessing you're referring to intellectual property that was already famous worldwide, before Netflix gained the rights to it. I don't currently have a Netflix subscription, but you're right, I'm not aware of any already-well-known "brands" they owned until very recently (I take it they now have the rights to Roald Dahl). So I'm hoping you're right about them wanting to be careful with Narnia!
Oh groan... the mind boggles. Dump some participants in a snow-covered region and have them evade the White Witch?
... If the only people who can assist the contestants are the Beavers from the BBC LWW series, I would absolutely watch that.
Now I'm having visions... It's a Narnia Knockout!!! 
(It's a Knockout was an absolutely bonkers game show / physical challenge extravaganza that used to be on Australian TV in the 1980s, and I'm aware there were versions in other countries too — at least in the UK — so I'm hoping at least some here will know what I'm talking about.)
"Now you are a lioness," said Aslan. "And now all Narnia will be renewed."
(Prince Caspian)
Posted : November 28, 2023 4:46 pm
The Rose-Tree Dryad liked
I won't speculate on Netflix's current plans except to say that IMO Voyage of the Dawn Treader is uniquely suited to adaptation as a tv show rather than a movie due to its episodic nature.
Posted : November 28, 2023 8:39 pm
GiigiPevensie and WhiteStag liked
Narnia is a difficult project to carry out not only because of the background of its writing but also because of the imagination that must be had to carry it out.
Greta's fear is understandable and honestly the idea of making MN a movie and HHB a series is not such a bad idea, especially because today's audience is demanding about what they want to see from Narnia.
Better written books are MN, HHB and LB, and that makes them more difficult to bring to the big screen. The whole adventure of HBB and VDT is slow because they really qualify as series while books like MN, LB and SC qualify as movies.
I am one of those who does not agree with the adaptations of lww and pc being remade.
I guess Netflix and Greta are just being cautious about Narnia, they know if they do something wrong it would be a big loss, no wonder they've kept the Narnia stuff in the closet until now.
This post was modified 11 months ago by GiigiPevensie
Posted : December 17, 2023 10:38 am
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