'The Magician's Nephew' trailer teases epic, colorful introduction of Narnia
MANILA, Philippines — Netflix and Sony have released the first trailer for "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew," the first film by Greta Gerwig adapting the famous "Chronicles of Narnia" book series by C.S. Lewis.
The books famously began with "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe." Lewis later published "The Magician's Nephew" as the series' first entry chronologically, setting up the events of the former.
The trailer begins with a large piece of cloth revealing the aforementioned wardrobe followed by the voice of Ciarán Hinds, "Sometimes one story is the beginning of all the others."
Playing the titular nephew Digory Kirke is David McKenna alongside fellow newcomer Beatrice Campbell as neighbor Polly Plummer, who asks if Digory's uncle Andrew Ketterley (Daniel Craig) is mad.
Digory shares that his sick mother Flora (Carey Mulligan) describes Andrew as a magician. Later, Polly takes Digory into Andrew's colorful laboratory.
There, the two children get their hands on magic rings and — as Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" kicks in — they are transported to the "Wood between the Worlds," where numerous pools can take them to other lands.
In one of these worlds, Digory rings a bell, which awakens the witch-queen Jadis (Emma Mackey), the future villain of the next book. Her arrival in London and the flying horse Fledge are just glimpses of magic presenting itself in an epic, colorful manner.
"Have you ever seen a world born?" goes Hinds' voice as a void appears.
Digory, Polly, and Andrew witness the lion Aslan (Meryl Streep) sing Narnia into existence, just before the title card hits.
The film also stars Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough, Susan Wokoma, Gerard Monaco, James Murray, and Samantha Spiro.
Gerwig recalled in a statement that reading the original book as a child and "falling in love with the gorgeously improbable but completely brilliant concept of a cosmic lion singing the world of Narnia to life."
"I didn't know that I would grow up to make films, but a universe built out of music is an idea that has always lived in my heart. It is the honor of a lifetime to be asked to imagine it into being," said the director, whose last film was smash hit "Barbie."
The filmmaker credited the "Narnia" series to her belief in magic, hidden worlds, adventure, that anywhere could be enchanted, and anyone could be swept up into an epic.
"That wonder and awe was available to everyone, even ordinary people like me... It transformed me," Gerwig ended.
"Narnia: The Magician's Nephew" premieres in Philippine theaters on February 10, 2027 for a regular theatrical run before streaming on Netflix. — Video from Columbia Pictures Philippines' YouTube channel
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