Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew trailer lands with Meryl Streep’s Aslan

Narnia is back, and this time it starts at the very beginning. Netflix put out the first trailer for Greta Gerwig’s Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, the first time C.S. Lewis’s story of how the magic land was made has been filmed.

The clip moved fast. When GistMatrix checked Netflix’s YouTube upload at about 8:35pm WAT, roughly an hour after it went live, it had about 156,000 views.

It is also Gerwig’s first movie since Barbie, which made $1.44 billion worldwide, according to TheWrap. So what is in it, who is in it, and when can Nigerians watch it?

When is Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew coming out?

The movie opens in IMAX cinemas on Wednesday, 10 February 2027, goes wider on Friday, 12 February, and lands on Netflix on Friday, 2 April 2027, according to TheWrap’s report on the trailer. Sony Pictures Releasing UK, which posted its own version of the trailer, gives 11 February for British cinemas.

That is a far longer cinema run than Netflix usually gives its movies. Until now the streamer has kept theatrical releases short, mostly for awards or one-off events.

How did we get here?

The road to this trailer has been long, and it changed direction once.

• 2018: Netflix signed a deal with the C.S. Lewis Company to make new adaptations of the Narnia books (TheWrap).
• Original plan: a two-week IMAX run over US Thanksgiving 2026, then Netflix on Christmas Day 2026, according to What’s on Netflix.
• About 1 May 2026: Netflix moved the movie to February 2027 and gave it a full wide release with a 49-day cinema window before streaming (Awards Radar; What’s on Netflix).
• 16 to 17 September 2026: Netflix released the logo and a behind-the-scenes image, and Empire’s cover story confirmed Meryl Streep as the voice of Aslan (What’s on Netflix).
• 13 October 2026: the first full trailer.

The Streep news split fans when it first surfaced. Some objected to a woman voicing a lion that many readers see as a Christ figure. Gerwig told Empire she wanted a voice that felt deep without being showy, according to What’s on Netflix.

Who is in the cast of The Magician’s Nephew?

Emma Mackey, the Sex Education star, plays Jadis, who later becomes the White Witch. Daniel Craig plays the meddling Uncle Andrew Ketterley, Carey Mulligan plays Mabel and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith plays Francis, according to What’s on Netflix. Newcomers David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell lead as Digory and Polly, the two children who stumble into other worlds.

Ciarán Hinds, Denise Gough, Samantha Spiro and Susan Wokoma complete the main cast listed by Netflix. Wokoma, known for Chewing Gum and the Enola Holmes films, was born in Peckham, London, to Kalabari parents from Rivers State.

Gerwig wrote and directed the movie. Her Barbie collaborators Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt did the music.

Can you watch Narnia in Nigeria?

Yes, on Netflix from 2 April 2027, going by the global date. When GistMatrix checked Netflix’s Nigerian page for the title at about 8:40pm WAT on Tuesday, 13 October, it was already listed, with the trailer playing and subscriptions from ₦2,500 a month for the Mobile plan to ₦8,500 for Premium.

The cinema run is less clear. As of 8:40pm WAT on 13 October, neither Netflix nor any Nigerian distributor had announced a February cinema date in Nigeria.

What happens next

IMAX screenings start on Wednesday, 10 February 2027, with the wider cinema release on Friday, 12 February. The movie arrives on Netflix, including Netflix Nigeria, on Friday, 2 April 2027. Producer Mark Gordon has said the film is expected to be rated PG.

FAQ

When is the Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew release date?
It opens in IMAX on 10 February 2027 and in wider cinemas on 12 February 2027, then streams on Netflix from 2 April 2027.

Who voices Aslan in the new Narnia movie?
Meryl Streep. Empire magazine confirmed the casting in its cover story in September 2026.

Is The Magician’s Nephew the first Narnia book?
It was published sixth, in 1955, but it comes first in the story’s timeline because it shows how Narnia was created.

Are you watching it in the cinema or waiting for Netflix? Tell us in the comments.

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