Walden Media Hasn’t Dropped Out of Narnia, Still Negotiating
We have been contacted by someone close to the production who claims that Walden Media has pulled out of making any further Narnia movies.
We are trying to confirm this news as quickly as possible. And should this indeed be the case, we have no idea what will become of the series from this point on.
UPDATE: There are a number of conflicting stories about what’s going on. We’re hearing different things from different people, so until things start to settle down we really don’t know anything for sure. What we can say for sure is that the future of the franchise at present is rather murky. Negotiations may or may not be ongoing, or may have ground to a halt for a while. We’re going to just have to wait and see what shakes out. -Tirian
UPDATE 2: I did have a chance to speak with officials from Walden Media today. Walden stated emphatically that they are still pursing another Narnia film and that they are continuing discussions with the C.S. Lewis Estate to make that a reality. At the present time nothing has been confirmed. But there has not yet been a final yes, or a final no. If Walden does another Narnia film, it will almost certainly be The Magician’s Nephew.
I think it is clear that some negotiations are still taking place, though perhaps as I suggested earlier, they are stalled. It is likely that Walden’s option on the film will last for several more years so it could be quite some time before we know for sure one way or the other.
I think we should all just mind our own buisnesses ?, someone wrote a comment that may or may not be true it doesnt matter, I mean how can we be absulotely sure what NW says is True ? I think we should all let people have there say, even if you dissagree with it , so I agree with Brich girl we have to relax, this is a fan site remember ! we shud be encoraging people to write comments, And once again im not trying to sound like a grouch ;D hahahaa 😀
there must be some news soon, it's driving me mad not knowing whether there is going to be another narnia film, which obviously i hope there is going to be
LOL I Love Georgie. Alright I'll stop.
There's gotta be something new, or is this how it all ends!?
Sorry,
Do you think My comment sounded mean ??? 😀
Diddnt mean to be.. 🙂
"The movie rights therefore revert to him"
Everyone can form their own opinions regarding this individual's credibility, of course. Jewel may be the completely authentic harbinger of doom here. I have no idea, and I don't wish to point any fingers. With that said, the film rights certainly do NOT "revert" to Douglas Gresham if Walden fails to exercise their options on future films. That is patently false. David and Douglas Gresham (unwisely) sold their stake in the C.S. Lewis Estate in the 1970s. They don't own anything to have "reverted" back to them. So… I'm just going to wait for an official announcement, if you don't mind, and I would recommend that everyone else does so, too. As I've said before, Phillip Anschutz is, ultimately, the driving force behind these films. If there is a way for Walden to continue, he and his team will find it. If not… well, we all move on.
In the meanwhile, never, ever underestimate a motivated billionaire.
For anyone who wants the VDT soundtrack and has yet to get it, HMV (online) is currently selling it for only £2.99. And Amazon (UK) too. Probably one of the three best things about the film is the music.
i just read somewhere that they had negotiated, but it will be a few years until we see a movie because they have to find a writer for the script.
"The producers of the Chronicles of Narnia films (UK Chronicles of Narnia films) have confirmed their intention to go ahead with a 4th Narnia Movie. Michael Flaherty, president of Walden Media, told The Christian Post that talks had begun on the next Narnia film but, as yet, the script has not been written. It might be a couple of years before we see." – Squidoo.com
so it looks like that there will be one. although it's a few years off. From the article it seems they are shooting for MN since it was the second highest successful book in the Narnia series. I could be wrong about this…just thought I should past on some and hopefully good news about this.
sources:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/mar/23/magicians-nephew-fourth-narnia-film
http://www.squidoo.com/narnia-magicians-nephew
Oh no! I didn't think that at all!
I had put a "." When I ment to put a " 🙂 " . Sorry, I was tired 🙂
Birch Girl, I'm not entirely certain how you meant for your comments to come across, so advance apologies if I've mistaken your intent. I'll be blunt, I'm rather irritated that you're apparently painting this as NarniaWeb randomly posting any internet rumor that drifts by as fact. That isn't how it works. We would never post a news item of this nature without it coming from a trustworthy source(i.e. not a random fanboy/girl playing Gossip Girl with the spy reports button). In this case, a very trustworthy person involved in the Narnia franchise passed on a report to a member of the forum. I happen to know who this person is and there was no reason to doubt their information. Unfortunately it seems there was some miscommunication between the Estate and Walden, which lead to this report. At no time did NarniaWeb claim it was undisputed fact and the very first iteration of the news story stated that we were attempting to get confirmation from Walden. When Walden replied to Tirian that it was not accurate, the story was promptly updated to reflect that information. It's fine if you're not happy with the current status quo, but don't try to paint this as NWeb acting like a supermarket tabloid.
They're decent, but if you haven't read the books, you'll probably be somewhat confused by them.
Bookwyrm, are you on NW staff? That's awesome. That seems like the best job ever 🙂
Sorry Bookwyrm, it was a bad way to say things. I do believe the NW had a real contact that they could trust and I do understand why they don’t name that contact. That said, it’s still only half a story and no one will openly go on record yet (that’s why I meant it should have gone in the Rumor forum – I really do NOT think of NW as tabloid!). I also meant to say that Jewel at least openly named a source and only claims to confirm what NW’s trusted contact already said, from a different side. Everyone can decide for themselves whether or not to believe Jewel is really in contact with DG. It would just be sad to drive fans away from the site or make them afraid to post. What if Jewel did have real news, we may have lost a valuable contact by not saying things like “Wow, that’s interesting, please contact Tirian right away so he can check on this for us.” We should start by being more encouraging, no matter what we believe. Sometimes we all just do things the wrong way, like me. I’m frustrated at the lack of complete news from NW, I think they should have waited until they had a full official story or posted it in the Rumor forum but I never meant to make them sound like a tabloid. Sorry again! I never mean to offend anyone when I post, just state an opinion and I'll try to follow my own advice and say things nicer in future.
I can speak to this. My little sister dragged me to the first two movies before I had read any of the books. I had no trouble making sense of the stories, but I thought those movies were deathly dull.
What do you mean by "Full story"? Did you expect a greenlight or something? What can be more full than that? Nw has somebody importent they are talking to from Walden. I think they have reported everything they can to us.
Even though it's not really NW fault there is no news.
Yeah, the first two are not very good at all.
Yep, I'm one of the moderators that runs GMD. It's fun most of the time, but right now there's not much to do sense the movie has been out on DVD for awhile and there's no news to discuss.
@Birch Girl: No worries. 🙂
Oh. They're still inbig negotiation for Narnia 4. They should be starting to cast and film the movie. Most likely, we are going to see Narnia 4 in the big-screen by 2012 or 2013. They should make Narnia 4 more relevant from the book, and they must show the real message and essence of the book itself.
Oh. They're still inbig negotiation for Narnia 4. They should be starting to cast and film the movie. Most likely, we are going to see Narnia 4 in the big-screen by 2012 or 2013. They should make Narnia 4 more relevant from the book, and they must show the real message and true essence of the book itself.
But they are not yet finished in their negotiations. So, we still don't know if there will be any Narnia 4 and what will it be. But Walden's top-grossing films are the Narnia series. They should only make Narnia more reliable in our time now but still bringing it's true essence. Can't even wait to see Narnia in the big-screen again. We shouldn't loose hope for Narnia-nearing to end-. The battle isn't finished. It's only the beginning!
If this whole thing goes on much longer, it is going to be 2014. But it really should be done by Winter 2013.
Does anyone else notice that fantasy is just a problematic genre on the big screen? What fantasy franchise besides Lord Of The Rings and Harry Potter has actually made it past one installment, let alone 2-3 or more?
Besides Never-Ending Story?
C'mon, even "In The Name Of The King" (a underrated fantasy film) is getting a sequel called "Two Worlds." Both are based on Dungeon Siege in case anyone wonders.
i hope thay do another movie its so enoying i havent
been on this site in over two months and its pritty much
the same news if thay plan on doing another movie thay
shood do it when thar is stiil interest and now that
thay just pout out the last harry potter movie
thay shood pout out one of the narnia movies
since harry potter was good thay shood try to make
the narnia movies realy good
I REALLY REALLY Hope they do another movie!! And with HarryPotter (Which I Love VERY VERY much<3)finished i think people are trying to find another way to keep their lifes magical! HP tought me a lot and im one of its biggest fans. But people need to move on even if its REALLY difficult! And i think Narnia is the best way to do it since it has the same amount of adventure, magic, fun and a great message! All HP fans are looking for a new saga to replace HP with! And The Narnia books are already AWESOME they just need to spice up the Narnia movies more, for Narnia to become "The Next HP" And with all the money they will obtain with that they'll be able to make the movies of the whole seven Books!! 😀
Honestly if they had just decided to do SC instead of randomly going for MN first, none of this probably would have happened -_-
By the time they get thru the negotiations it'll probably be better to reboot instead of trying to make Will Poulter look younger.
I think they Should make Narnia more exciting and magical in the movies , Because i Think thats why alot of people like harry potter better then narnia, 🙂 like the effects and the music and they could maybe make the scenes more intense 🙂
Mr Non-Negotiable, if you have done your homework fully you will know how the C.S.Lewis company is made up, and where the rights revert to. Mr Gresham is an important part of the company.
It's also worth repeating the comment made elsewhere that Walden is a big organisation and the people who make the public comments (eg reactions on other websites) may not be fully informed.
Jewel, I would love to discuss this information with you. I can't find you on the forums, but if you are there with a different name, will you please send me a private message (PM)? If not, could you email me at coracle@narniaweb.com ? Thank you – this is a genuine request.
– Coracle (NarniaWeb mod)
I can't believe that it's been over a month, and they still haven't brought us any news of how the negotiation process is going with the next narnia movie; this can't be a good sign.
::aslan:: -trying to see if little aslan face shows up like on Aslan's Country
How do you figure they wouldn't be in negotiations over SC? It sounds to me like poor DVD sales have made them cautious about the whole idea of making another Narnia film. It's hard enough to get concerns about fidelity and quality nailed down, without adding serious economic constraints to the mix.
While I actually love all 3 of the movies so far, I completely agree with you on everything else. The sticky situations with Walden have gone on long enough and they've been dragging the entire franchise down (especially because of the huge time gaps in between movies). I'm very attached to what was done well in the films, but given the overall picture of things, I'm beginning to become convinced that the best thing now would be a total reboot…WITHOUT Walden. I'm pretty sure there are plenty of producers out there who'd be willing to take on the project. I just hope there's some big-name person out there who'd want to work on it – sometimes a name can draw in a LOT more viewers (e.g. people going to see the upcoming 'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark' just because Guillermo del Toro produced it). It's too bad Jackson is busy with 'The Hobbit' – he's the only person I can think of that I'd really trust with the material.
Anyway, if they go for another sequel still, by the time it's made, it'll have been almost a decade since Adamson's LWW and it would probably make more sense to reboot than to continue dragging out the current series. I'm glad the films so far finished, for the most part, the Pevensie story, and I feel if they end it here it will be fine. The Narnia films just need a fresh start, away from Walden's tendency to screw up things (sorry, they've REALLY been getting on my nerves lately).
Heck, when he's done with 'The Hobbit' he should just step in and reboot the whole thing.
Erm, Narnia's made it past one installment?
Pirates of the Caribbean could probably qualify as a fantasy series, considering the Big Bad in each movie is supernatural. It's at 4 movies now and a 5th is in the works.
Mr. Mole:
The C.S. Lewis Estate is overseen by an attorney in Geneva and an accountant in Ireland. They represent, and report to, two private trusts. Mr. Gresham is a paid employee. I have NO IDEA how "important" he is. I have my opinion as to that matter, but it is just mine. I am loathe to discuss the gentleman in any more than a peripheral fashion here, as criticism of him (even of a legitimate nature) is NOT met well AT ALL. Regardless, I am certainly not trying to diminish his "status". If you say his position carries considerable weight, then that's just fantastic. I don't care, really. It has no bearing on what I stated. The salient point is, he is an EMPLOYEE who, decades ago, sold off his interest in the estate, including anything to do with the film rights. To say that the rights "revert to him" upon refusal of option, is beyond ludicrous, and indicative that the information presented by the poster in question is either woefully lost in translation from the source, or simply a bunch of nonsense. Either way, it's either partially, or completely, inaccurate, and I want everyone to know that before they start panicking. As I clearly stated, it is quite possible that Walden have, indeed, dropped out. Logic, however, suggests that there is no way I would use this poster's statements as proof of that.
If you have any further information to share, please do. If you wish to correct me, then by all means proceed with something more substantive. I don't mind being corrected if I'm wrong. My pride is not a factor here. I just want everyone to hang on to some hope. I'll believe Walden are out when I see an official statement from them. Not a second before, and certainly not as a result of a very dubious online comment.
i know,is there still life at narniaweb? have our fearless webmasters flown the coop? r they still alive? are they fugitives? have they fled aslan's country in disgust over the VDT movie? webmasters- please show a sign of life!! even a hello would do!!
what i dont understand is they said they want to make magicians nephew next because the sales of the movies mirror the sales of the books. Maybe that's because they have made the movies in the same order the books came out! Please tell I'm not the only one that's seen this.
If they make the magicians nephew next they will disrupt this order. The movie magicians nephew might not do as well as the book, and the silver chair movie also might not do well.
Also, won't they be running into some problems casting wise? If the do magician's nephew next, Eustace will be to old. Also, in the last battle, Jill and Eustace are 17 or 18. If they do magician's nephew next, they will only have one more movie after silver chair before last battle. They will either have to take forever after silver chair, which is a really bad idea, or the people they cast as eustace and jill will be not the right age.
how come I can figure this out but the head people at Walden and fox can't?
If I understand you correctly (which I might not) you feel that the book sales are a function of the original publishing order. So, that means Magician's Nephew is the second best selling because it's 4th in the original chronology. Could you explain your formula?
Looks like it didn't work 🙂
400th comment! (Sorry, I'm bored 🙂 )
I think they are talking about Narnia 4 like these:
"We will make Narnia 4!" "What if it flops again in the big-screen?"
"This will be the last Narnia movie."
"We will do our best to save the franchise from it's weak box office."
"This time, we'll make sure that Narnia will earn a big box-office results"
Make Narnia 4 epic and magical and better than the first three movies. Silver Chair is next as chronologized but it lacks in the book sales. Magician's Nephew is very magical, make this next, although it's not really next after VDT and Poulter's age will be a problem.
Just make Narnia 4 up to Narnia 7. Film it and make it with all your heart, do it seriously and make it epic, magnificent and magical just like in the books. Be sagacious for Narnia 4.
Further in!
sorry, I meant 6th in the original chronology.
What I mean is that the movie sales are a result of the order their being released in, not the book sales. We do know that the sales success of the movies is pretty much the same as the sales success as the books, and the thing they're doing with the movies that's the same as the books is the order they come out in.
Another thing i just noticed. It's easy for us narnia fans who have read all the books and pretty much know the story by heart along with all the other narnia stuff out there, not to get confused if they really do make magicians nephew next. But what about all the other people who haven't read the books, or have only read the books maybe once a long time ago? There going to get confused. Most people today do not have the comprehension skills people did 50 years ago. There going to get turned off.
Well, if you're right, given that the fourth Narnia book had significantly worse sales than the 3rd, then the 4th Narnia movie is going to do significantly worse than VDT. In effect, you're saying that Narnia 4 is going to be a failure no matter what they do, so they better not make any more movies.
to Anhun: That's not what I'm saying at all. My apologies if I confused you. I guess what I meant to say is their doing the stories of the movies in the same order as they published the books. I don't mean that no matter what was the third movie, it would have the same results. They published the books a certain order, and they had certain results. Maybe if Magicians Nephew was the first book published they would have made less, and LWW would have made more. We'll never know.
What I mean is the movies follow the success patterns of the books because the sequence of stories is the same as that of the books. Get it now?
So, if Silver Chair comes 4th, it will be a failure, mirroring the pattern of the books, but, if a different movie comes 4th and Silver Chair comes later, we don't know?
Yes, sort of. I don't think the book was a failure, it just didn't make as much money.
My point was that if they follow the order of the books, magicians nephew would be a success. If they don't, magician's nephew might not be a success, and silver chair could also not be a success. If money is the issue, making MN seems to great a risk.
Happy B-day Sophie W! Today's my b-day too!
Lol. I don't blame you one bit. 🙂
Coracle, I emailed you the other day, but haven't heard back yet. If you didn't get the message I sent, just reply here to let me know that and I'll resend it. If you've just been busy, I do understand that you have other committments. Thanks again.
LOL 🙂
Look, I dont think anything is for sure right now. I dont think you can say for sure that Silver Chair would be a fail in box office, just because they mirrored the book sales.Why then, would the prince Caspian movie have made more money in the box offfice, then VDT, even if the book sales favored VDT. My opinion is, that it was the hype for PC and the lack of audience appeal for VDT that lead to the difference. So,for the franchise, what would be the logical choice for the next Narnia movie? Magicians Nephew. Mostly because, the audience needs something new. Right now the main audience of Narnia(not including us fans) is diminishing, and if they did Silver Chair, it would diminish even more. So, what they need to do in my honest and well thought out opinion, they need to reintroduce movie goers to Narnia, and thats why Magicians Nephew is my choice.
Making MN is definatley worth the risk in my opinion. Heres, a question, is it just me, or this site has like no new news? I mean, is it really in that much of a pre production state, cause i sure hope there making progress at all.
"the audience needs something new."
How is Magician's Nephew any newer than Silver Chair? I would say Silver Chair is a better bet because it can be marketed on its own merits, having a solid story and engaging characters. You don't have to rely on the (non-existent) good will left over from the other movies. On the forum, there's a thread for thinking up tag lines for MN. Almost all of them involve "Narnia" this or "Alsan" that, or "White Witch" the other. This is an issue because, at this point, Narnia has almost no cashé at the box office.
"Something new" means the creation story, a prequel, not just the next story in line,something unique. MN is unlike any other book in the chronicles, and is very different. You might say "well, SC is a different story, why is MN anymore different then MN". Heres my point. Its the creation story and the beginning of all Narnia. I think, for a moviegoer whos kind of lost interest in the series, this is fresh start for them, and will explain a lot for someone whos never read the books. You are right,words people are gonna think of are stuff like Aslan and so on, but they will think of new ones too,like "Lampost", "Proffessor Kirke", and "Charn". It will explain the origin story of the White Witch, and so on.
I think that doing MN could have a benefit over Silver Chair only because it would show how the tie-in worked/started from our world to Narnia. I think that a lot of people got a thrill of seeing various parts of London with Harry Potter's movies.
The only other choice may be to go straight to Last Battle. While that may not be a favorite choice, I don't know if Narnia has the same continuity as other long running movie franchises and it may be best, if there is only to be one more, to go there.
Ummmmm……..Maybe, i dont know how skippin strait to last battle would work. But it might, because Poulter, is 18, and in the books, hes like only 12 in Silver chair/last battle, soooo, with MN in the works he will be at least 20. Thats not going to work. They better make SC first.