Gresham Shares Plans for Next Narnia Film
It has been over six months since we last heard any kind of update on the Narnia films. Now, we finally have something to report.
Kristi from The Lion’s Call has posted a brief report on Douglas Gresham’s (co-producer, Lewis’ stepson) comments at Oxford earlier this week. He revealed his hopes for the future of the Chronicles of Narnia films:
- There is a seven-year moratorium on producing any Narnia films outside of Walden Media.
- He might have future films made independently.
- The Silver Chair is the film he would like to make next.
- He would like to see Andrew Adamson return, but thinks he would be too expensive.
- In the meantime, he will focus on a film adaptation of Lewis’ “The Screwtape Letters.”
We previously believed the moratorium period was 3-4 years, and that the next film would very likely be The Magician’s Nephew. Now it appears the wait will be longer than we thought, and Gresham will maintain the original published order and continue with The Silver Chair.
To clarify the issue: By law, no Narnia films can be released by anyone without Walden Media until the moratorium ends, and it appears that Gresham would prefer to make the films independently. Assuming the moratorium began just after Dawn Treader‘s release, the earliest we could see the next Narnia film is probably 2018.
What do you think? Share your thoughts in the Discussion Forum!
I'm surprised that the moratorium is that long, but I suppose I can understand why it has to be. I'm glad that Gresham would like to get Adamson back, but he probably would be too expensive if the films begin to be made independently. As long as the films get produced and are faithful, I will be happy with them.
Long time to wait; let's hope it will be The Silver Chair and it will be worthwhile. 🙂
As long as there IS another Narnia film, I. AM. VERY. HAPPY!!! 😀 😀 Oh my gosh I'm so excited now!! And Silver Chair is the one I wanted, so YAY!! I hope they can get Ben Barnes back as Caspian!! If not, I will be very very sad. 🙁
If Adamson returns, it will be well worth the wait. He's the only one who did Lewis' vision justice. Get the Adamson/Gregson-Williams team back on!
I hope it is worth the wait!
So nice to have news to report. Lots of surprising stuff here! He wants to make SC next? Independently? 7 years?
I think, if anything, all this makes me feel a little better.
And THIS is why I LOVE Douglas Gresham. Without him, the films would not be what they were. His determination to keep Lewis' spirit in the films is amazing. We need more people like him on this. Also I agree with Noc. I'd love to see that!!! Plus the fact that he wants to do SC next is just an added bonus! =)
I am actually excited to hear that the next Narnia films may be independent. If they are independent It will be much easier to make them faithful to the books rather than worrying about the business standpoint of another company like walden. (not that business wouldn't be involved) In this case it will be easier to make the films faithful without dumbing them down. They will be able to take more risks!
Yes! I'm really excited! I wish they could start off with Magician's Nephew but Silver Chair is alright I guess. But 7 years? Really I think they should reboot.
Hey, at least Eustace will probably still be young enough to play his part again (in both SC and LB 🙂 And 7 years doesn't really harm the ages of anyone else either, since the Pevensies would only be needed for HB, and they are all adults in that one.
7 years will also give Twilight and other manic franchises (say, Hunger Games) run their course.
Perhaps, patience in this matter is a good thing 🙂
7 years, eh? Reboot!!!!
i hope they'll make the silver chair, but i dont think will poulter is gonna be in the film, because he is getting too old now.
That he wants to make them independently is interesting. I wonder if he's gotten fed up with slick Hollywood adaptations that mess too much with Lewis's vision?
Wow, that's quite a while to wait. At least we have more solid idea of when another movie can be produced. Interesting points about who Gresham wants to direct and what film should be made next. I'm not really sure what the impact of making the films independently would have on the next film overall, but maybe that will allow the film to be a closer adaption to the books?
With this being made after 2018, I question whether a reboot would be in order or not. The previous cast of the last 3 films will be too old to play any of their characters. Ben Barnes will be about the right age to play old King Caspian. lol
So much better this than a series of increasingly unfaithful adaptations. Now the green mist has cleared (thank goodness) I think there's an enormous amount to look forward to.
I was there in the Lion's Call Chat room when Ajnos turned up with the news and we were excited that we got it ahead of Narniaweb 😉
But yeah an interesting bit. A little sad that the wait is so long, but I like the sound of the direction it could take then, and Screwtape in the mean time is something to look forward to.
Is that 7 years all together? If so we only have to wait 5 years 😛
And btw, I'd rather wait 7 years for an awesome Narnia film that did Lewis justice than get one immediately that's mediocre at best.
Very disappointing, but a bit exciting at the same time. I personally would not care for a reboot, even with the long wait. All good thing are worth waiting for…
Whoooppeee! YES! Silver Chair!
Agreed. I hope that can be counted on…
I think Poulter's time has passed. They'll have to re-cast.
Hopefully I'll be able to work with future Narnia films after I graduate from Asbury University majoring in film production. It's pretty cool I get to go to a school where I see actual props from the Narnia films everyday as I walk to my classes.
I agree unfortuately. I am a huge fan of continuity, but once I heard they would have to wait 3-4 years (at the time) I figured even then Poulter would be too old to continue the role
I can't wait..i hope that even with this long wait between films that they will be able to use all the original actors…I always thought that LWatW and Prince caspian being done by disney was amazing and was slightly disapointed when disney dropped out of VotDT..like part of the magic was taken out of the films. I love the books, but i enjoy most of the changes they made to the past two films..cause unless we want to sit for 3hrs or more(even though i wouldn't mind) the plots needed to be slightly changed…Hope that all of the series will be completed some day soon:)
With the exception of Will Poulter as Eustace (and possibly Tilda Swinton as the White Witch), there really aren't any casting concerns with a seven-year gap. Yes, you might have to worry about a young Caspian at the end of Silver Chair, but if they wanted to make him middle-aged, they could use Ben Barnes again. It would still provide a stark contrast to the old king we see early on. There might be some issues with the Pevensies in The Last Battle, but assuming they make a film every two years, Will Moseley will be at most in his late 30s and, if he's still boyish looking enough, could be made to look around 30. That would be a bit older than in the books, but probably acceptable.
as much as i love LWW, PC and VoDT, i would like to see a reboot starting with Magicians Nephew and going through chronologically…but then again, Silver Chair would be dope…i'm so torn
This is why I don't like film series where the stars are children: you get these completely idiotic, bureaucratic hoops to jump through, which take ridiculously long, and during that whole time, your child actors are becoming less and less believable as their characters they are portraying. And then they have find a new actor/actress to replace the old (literally) one. That breaks continuity and takes away from the merit of the series. It's just really hard to make myself believe that a character looks one way in one film and then in the next film, it's a completely different person because they had to recast.
Will Poulter was a special case, since apparently he was 16 or 17 during filming but he could pass as 12, both in voice and physical appearance, although I think they did something to his voice electronically to make him sound much more squeaky and annoying than he is.
Anyway, now he's 19, and by the time the 7 year wait time is up, he'll be entirely too old to play a character that is supposed to only be months older than he (that same character) was in the previous film.
So here's the question: do we recast a new person or do we change the storyline so we can keep the same actor? In my opinion, neither is a good option, but I suppose the least infuriating for me would be recasting, as long as the new actor looks at least somewhat similar.
Anyway, my rant is over. I hope they continue to make halfway decent Narnia films, as the first three have not been that bad, in their own right, even though they did diverge from the novels (at least the second and third ones did) in some parts.
Personally I'd like them to just reboot the entire series and act like all the previous films never existed. I would want them to give the films a totally different film from the Walden Media films. Smaller scale, less LOTR-lite. The independent nature could help in that with smaller budgets they will be less tempted to make it so "epic". Get a whole new cast and start with The Magician's Nephew, and then do the rest in publication order.
Jumping straight into The Silver Chair will be slightly confusing I would think.
My only concern is: will an independent movie have the money for all the CGI required for Aslan and other special effects, and for the props, centaurs, etc? I fear we'll have BBC all over again.
A question: is Douglas Gresjam in any way involved in the movie The Lion Awakes? From what I've read, apparently not. I wonder why…
Sorry, *Gresham*.
You know, after all this, I'm not sure I want them to continue with the current franchise. Dawn Treader really killed it for me. I'd much rather see them do stylistic animated adaptations of all seven. Maybe they could even get Disney on board for that. Better yet, scrounge up the people who did The Secret of Kells and have them do it.
The major advantages to an animated adaptation include: no issues with location scouting, no real financial limitations on special effects and set pieces, the ability to properly stylize the world and make it look as magical as it should, and not having to worry about the actors outgrowing the roles between films–as they have already done several times over.
Yeah, if I was in charge, that's what I would have done all along, and I think it's a much better plan.
Why would he be involved in a film adaptation of a novel by Robert Low?
the one thing im mostly worried about is Will Poulter's age. by then, he'll be 22 (we're the same age, about). could he still pull off being Eustace? he just has to! i will weep if anyone else plays Eustace! although, it might be ok cuz Will Moseley was 21 and Ben was 26 in Prince Caspian, and both were playing characters that were presumedly about 16-17, and it worked. so i think Will Poulter could do it :3
What is wrong with making them epic? The books were epic!
well…it's not awesome news, but it is news. hopefully it won't be the whole 7 years and someone will join with walden media. i would love so much to see silver chair on the big screen!!!!!
Hmm, okay, I'm in sort of a state of shock, but good shock.
Seven years is indeed longer than thought, but hey, on the upside, it will allow some of the current popular film series, The Hunger Games in particular, to succeed and be done. On the downside, no Will Poulter or any original cast (for HHB adaptation), but then again, even if SC were to start production tomorrow, I thought Poulter was kind of too old anyway.
And The Silver Chair next? Not my favorite book, but I think this is a lot of people's preferred choice of next film, even mine.
I'm not sure how I feel about the films each being made independently, but hey, we still have some time left before we can really speculate.
I'm not really sure what else to say at the moment. I'd like to see the link to the original interview, if possible.
I got a chance to talk to Michael Flaherty in this March and asked him about the Narnia films. He politely said that they'd love to make more, but his tone implied that he was doubtful. It looks like we'll be waiting until 2018. When he polled the crowd about what film they'd like to see next, the response was overwhelming for Magicians Nephew. With having to wait 6 more years and the first chronological book the favorite here, that spells reboot.
@Gregory that's not what the movie is based on… the movie is based on the life of CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien
Problem with polls is that they depend on the demographics… NW held a similar poll a few years ago and the response was overwhelmingly SC 😉
He definitely is. He went over every line of the screenplay.
NOOOOOOO! 🙁 Seven years is a VERY LOOONG time! At least it sounds like they will eventually make all of them. 🙂 My guess is that Will Poulter will be too old to return for SC though…
So it seems I may have a chance to work on a narnia film after all 😉
Really? He looks SO young and small in DT – not anywhere close to the young man Eustace seems to be in SC …
Whoa! just looked at his bio – would never guess he's 19!!! Lol. Well, he LOOKS young enough to play the part anyway 🙂 And of course, one always hears stories of 30 year olds playing highschoolers ….
We'll just have to see. It might be a moot point anyway (but I hope not!)
NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! 2018? And that's at best??????? NNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
…please, just quite the series.
I hate to be such a puddleglum, but I don't foresee any good future adaptations coming unless someone with a tons of vision, passion, and respect for C.S. Lewis steps up to the plate.
These books obviously are hard to make into movies, and it's clear that as of now no one has really put in a ton of effort to make them true to the book.
REBOOT! 🙂
It's a long wait, but hopefully will result in films that stay true to the books. I've never understood why Hollywood takes stories that have withstood the test of time and rewrites them!
Yeah, he was a lot taller at the premiere. I loved the job he did in VDT, but it's not unprecedented to recast a great actor in a major role. Dumbledore was fairly well hidden under all that facial hair, but we're not getting Ian Holm as the Hobbit and we're still pretty happy.
glumPuddle, aren't you studying filmmaking? My dream would be for you to direct a Narnia film. Maybe this seven year gap will help make that a reality! 🙂
… I'll be in my 20s…. crap.
I've been wondering about this too, Gregory. It seems like it might be a really good option. You now, I'm still rather of the opinion that the old animated cartoon had the very best script of any of the movies we've seen (with the possible exception of omitting Father Christmas). It's very faithful, has great music, and is moving in all the right places (and I have an argument for why we should forgive them the ugly turtlenecks). While my dream Narnia animated movie would actually be akin to a Disney fairytale film, complete with songs by Alan Menken, a series of made-for TV films could be done on a much lower budget with current animation techniques (Even I have made a seven-minute Narnia film, though it was a parody.). It may not be exactly what we're dreaming of, but it might be one way to actually get them all made…do they still have After School Specials anymore? 😛
That's what Doug is. But making movies isn't a one-man show.
WAAAAAAA! (crying) 7 years is TOO LONG!!!!!! Narnia is like my favorite thing in the WHOLE WORLD. And I thought 2 years in between PC and VDT, and the 3 in between LWW and PC was bad. The actors are going to be way too old. I think they should make LB then (depending on the ages of the actors)HHB then SC or SC then LB. well, there's nothing we can do. *sigh*. 🙁
So will I :/ Georgie will be 23, Skandar will be 28, Will M. will be 32, and Anna will be 30. :/Does anyone else find that strange?
The problem with an animated film, though, is that in my mind, it's real… not a cartoon. When I read those books, they came to life, and animation would potentially take some of the life- the realism- back out of them.
bringing Andrew Adamson back would be best. I hope they will work it out with Walden, because I think that partnership was good.
On a side note: Gresham should play the old man in a film adaptation of "The Old Man and the Sea" just sayin.
Well, at least I have time enough to establish myself in the film world so I can eventually work on the screenplay for at least one of the movies xD
But honestly, I wouldn't mind an entire reboot. I love the casting for the current film series, but by the time the moratorium is lifted, the actors will be too old. It'd be nice for the series to get the Peter Jackson treatment – by that time he'd be done with the Tintin trilogy (assuming they don't change their minds and make more than 3 movies). And besides, this series is going to be re-made into films until the end of time. Narnia is classic and is a staple of so many people's childhoods that it will never go away.
Still…I'm sad that we might not get to see the same cast return. I really do love them, especially Georgie 🙁
I'll be almost 30. O_O By the time they'd finish my future children would be reading the books. :O
It would be nice to know, for certain, the specifics of the moratorium. Is it, as glumPuddle stated that he assumed, seven years after the release date? Is it seven years after the last day of its theatrical run? Is it seven years between production cycles? It makes quite a bit of difference, depending on how you define it.
Also, the notion that Andrew Adamson "would be too expensive" sounds a lot of alarm bells, for many different reasons. I don't know… I don't see a lot to be hopeful about, unfortunately.