Netflix is rebooting CS Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia with a series of films that will need to learn from the mistakes of the 2000s movies.
Netflix is rebooting The Chronicles of Narnia with its own series of films, but must learn from the mistakes of the ones that came out in the 2000s in order to succeed. Based on the popular fantasy book series from British author C.
S. Lewis, The Chronicles of Narnia began with arguably the most well-known of the seven novels, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, which Disney adapted in 2005 and followed by adaptations of the next two books in the series, Prince Caspian in 2008 and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in 2010. While the first film was successful, subsequent sequels became less popular with critics and audiences. With its flagship fantasy series Stranger Things ending in 2024, the streaming platform will benefit from something else to fill the void, and The Chronicles of Narnia has seven novels that could be stretched out into films with multiple parts. Greta Gerwig directing can fix Disney's franchise provided that Netflix understands what went wrong with previous iterations of what should be a slam-dunk IP. But with another season of The Rings of Power on Amazon and more Lord of the Rings films on the horizon, not to mention House of the Dragon on Max, Netflix can't afford to ignore the lessons from the prior films' failures. SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT 10 Netflix’s Chronicles Of Narnia Can Be Darker Than The 2000s Movies C.S. Lewis's books were primarily geared towards children, but they had darker elements, particularly pertaining to certain characters like Edmond and Eustace as well as their allegorical references, like in the seventh book The Last Battle when the eldest sister Susan doesn't return to Narnia because of her metaphorical impurity. The Netflix Chronicles of Narnia films could be grittier than the Disney films, which were sanitized to the extent that they didn't even have any blood during battle sequences. Given that they'll be released on a streaming service, they'll be able to cater to a slightly more mature audience than strictly younger viewers. 9 Netflix Must Keep The Release Schedule Consistent Disney's The Chronicles of Narnia adhered to a staggered release schedule that had large gaps. Trying to be summer blockbusters when Harry Potter films were also coming out meant that they were forced to compete with demographics that were torn between seeing them. The streaming landscape is just as crowded as anything release theatrically, so a consistent release schedule, without several years in between, will help Netflix's Chronicles of Narnia stay current and relevant in the public consciousness and awareness. 8 Netflix’s Chronicles Of Narnia Can Start At A Different Point The 2000s films began with The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe but as far as the Netflix films are concerned, this trajectory doesn't have to be the case. For instance, The Magician's Nephew was published halfway through Lewis's series, but it featured the creation of Narnia as a whole. If Netflix decided to begin with this book, it could be marketed as a standalone film, and even advertised as "see how Narnia was created" without leaving anything unfinished if it's not successful and flops. 7 Netflix Must Commit To The Chronicles Of Narnia's Full Story Disney's Chronicles of Narnia reached the fourth book The Silver Chair before running out of steam. The Netflix series has the chance to tell the entire saga over the seven novels, even if this is told over several parts. If the Netflix series can commit to completing the saga, it will finally be able to finish the story that the House of Mouse wasn't able to because of a lack of interest, budget, and dedication to completing a beloved fantasy franchise that some generations don't know very much about. 6 Netflix Must Keep The Costs Of Chronicles Of Narnia Down The Disney Chronicles of Narnia films had high budgets due to lots of special effects that hoped to increase the immersion and scale of the franchise. In the 2000s, this made them too expensive to continue unless they were a huge success at the box office, but due to substantial delays, this wasn't the case. Netflix will need to keep the cost of the films down in order to not over-extend the proprietary budget for visual effects or anything else that's needed to bring Narnia to life. 5 Netflix Chronicles Of Narnia Shouldn’t Compete With Other Fantasy Series When the 2000s Chronicles of Narnia films came out, they were released in a crowded market already saturated with fantasy franchises. They were competing with The Lord of the Rings trilogy which had already done significant numbers at the box office, as well as Harry Potter. Currently, there are Lord of the Rings films as well as a reboot of Harry Potter currently in development, leaving the fate of Narnia in the balance. If the Netflix adaptations are to succeed, they need to stand up to scrutiny and comparisons to established fantasy series. 4 Netflix Must Make Chronicles Of Narnia Feel Unique In order to stand out from other fantasy series in development as well as other streaming films, Netflix's The Chronicles of Narnia needs to feel special and unique on its own. That means dynamic world-building that is intrinsic to its own development, without feeling like a lukewarm rehash of other fantasy archetypes and tropes that have come before. The only way this is possible is if it isn't made to be a copy of what’s been done before. 3 Netflix’s Chronicles Of Narnia Should Incorporate Practical Effects At the time that The Chronicles of Narnia films came out in the 2000s, CGI was used liberally and emphatically to build franchises while the technology was still new. The films were liberal with it, while the older BBC versions of the books adapted for British television in the '80s became beloved children's classics by utilizing practical effects, such as an animatronic lion as Aslan. The new Netflix films should strive to strike a balance, so they don’t look so dated while at the same time looking authentic and real. 2 Netflix Should Lock In A Consistent Creative Team The 2000s films had a problem being consistent throughout the filming process, resulting in writers, producers, and directors changing from film to film. With a consistent creative team, Netflix's Chronicles of Narnia will be able to develop a long-term strategy and storytelling goal, and fans won't have to worry about a change-up in the established regime. Even if Greta Gerwig is only involved in the first two films, she might be able to establish a team that will carry on her vision going forward. 1 Netflix’s Chronicles Of Narnia Must Have A Cohesive Tone Since they were released at different times over the years with a different creative team and a strange schedule, the 2000s films became very disjointed. It didn't help that some of C.S. Lewis's novels featured more battles than others and some only had a few, but a cohesive tone would help make them feel like they were unified. Netflix has to make sure The Chronicles of Narnia feels like every film is in the same collective universe and fans will be able to instantly connect with its established and identifiable tone.
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