IMAX Release for Greta Gerwig’s Narnia Movie? (UPDATED)
According to Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw and Puck‘s Matt Belloni, Netflix is in discussions with IMAX Corp. to potentially release Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia on over 2,000 IMAX screens worldwide—a major shift for the streaming giant, which has historically resisted large-scale theatrical releases.
This conversation comes on the heels of Gerwig reportedly advocating for a theatrical run of her Narnia films with Netflix’s new head of film, Dan Lin. Netflix was reportedly unwilling to meet her requests repeating that theatres are simply “not their model“.
But there now appears to be a change of attitude from Netflix, as the company is now exploring a potential partnership with IMAX to bring Narnia to the big screen.
While Netflix and major theater chains have never been able to agree on a business model, Gerwig and the film’s producers see an opportunity with Imax, which has close to 2,000 screens in 90 countries. Imax has signaled to Gerwig that it will add the film to its slate of upcoming movies if Netflix agrees to such a deal.
However, there are challenges. Netflix’s longstanding policy has been to avoid an exclusive theatrical window, a key requirement for major chains like AMC and Regal, which would need to sign on for the release to proceed on their IMAX screens. Shaw reports that talks are still in the early stages, with sources cautioning that no agreements have been finalized.
A theatrical deal for Gerwig’s Narnia doesn’t indicate a fundamental shift in Netflix’s strategy, but is another exception to its otherwise straight-to-streaming model, which it has occasionally veered from to satisfy filmmakers seeking to release their pictures in cinemas.
Representatives for Netflix, IMAX, and Gerwig have declined to comment on the ongoing discussions.
Update 10/29/24
In Matt Belloni’s What I’m Hearing newsletter published early on October 29th, new details emerged on a potential compromise between Netflix and Greta Gerwig.
According to Belloni, Netflix is considering a 3 to 5 week exclusive theatrical run on IMAX screens for Narnia, theorizing a potential Thanksgiving release in theaters, leading up to a Christmas debut on Netflix.
This plan would give Gerwig the theatrical presence she wanted, after limited access to premium screens for Barbie due to Oppenheimer’s IMAX exclusivity. Netflix, meanwhile, could retain its streaming-first approach by framing this move to IMAX as a premium, niche release.
This move aims to keep Gerwig happy and on board the project, with top Netflix executives—including Ted Sarandos and Dan Lin—reportedly backing the plan, though securing AMC’s cooperation will prove a challenge. However, IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond is reportedly eager for a big holiday exclusive, and his influence may play a role in bridging the gap between Netflix and theatre owners.
Would this distribution plan simply impact where we watch ‘Narnia’, or might it fundamentally shape the movie’s look and feel? Discuss this in our Community Forums!
I seriously hope this happens. Narnia belongs in theaters. It’s cinema material.
Actually, I disagree. Many of the Narnia books don’t fit the movie formula (as we saw with Disney’s attempts to make them fit). I would have rathered a series that didn’t feel the pressure to conform.
I know Netflix doesn’t like this compromising of their business model, but I think it’s imperative that Narnia gets a theatrical release. A streaming-only release might break out and be a draw for Netflix subscribers. But a film that had a theatrical release is sure to. A lot of theatrical release films that are given Netflix releases always end up being some of their most streamed movies, EVEN if they had a mild reception. Obviously that doesn’t mean we are ok with a mid-tier film. But what it does mean is that even if a well made film doesn’t have a blockbuster reception in the movie theaters, it will likely be successful enough on Netflix for them to continue through more of the book to film adaptations.
Yes please. I think the immersive environment of an IMAX theater could be a perfect fit for Narnia. I want to get lost in that world.
The bigger the event this is, the better!
I love your comment, Glumpuddle! I would love to get lost in Narnia too! I realised how stark the difference is between a small screen at home, and a cinema screen, the other day. I watched one of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies at home. It felt like such a smaller deal compared with watching it in the cinemas when it came out. The scene that has the best example is of a dramatic serious scene on a black ship in the rain. In a cinema you get swept up in the moment. At home there was a layer of “house” in between.
Can’t wait to hear casting and location news about the Netflix Narnia film. In the meantime, these speculative news stories are nice.
This would be a shrewd compromise. If anyone can pull this off, it’s Greta, and she has my full backing. With Netflix and IMAX together, you’ve got yourself a global movie event.
@ Will – Who are you disagreeing with? The conversation is about theatres or Netflix exclusives. Either would be a movie!
Ideally, they can work something out with Netflix to release the film in theaters which would mean they’re investing in actually promoting the film which will add to Narnia’s awareness!
Gerwig is likely the only person who could have forced Netflix to change their mind on this. Despite not owning the rights, she’s got all the leverage in this situation.
A holiday release for Narnia just feels right! I hope they’re able to work a deal out.
This comment is a reaction to the update about Gerwig and Netflix’s compromise.
Sounds really cool! Unfortunately, I don’t think there are any IMAX cinemas near me. 🙁 I’d have to go to another state for Thanksgiving just to see the Narnia movie. Bummer.
Would love to see Netflix proven wrong with their strategy on theatres. Cool to see it’s Narnia leading the charge!
This seems like a pretty good compromise, which I hope goes well so Netflix could get a clue that theatrical releases are a good thing. The only thing that concerns me is that IMAX screenings tend to be far more expensive than normal screenings. That and the last time I saw a movie in IMAX, it was a disappointing experience.
I wonder if they’d also provide the movie to ordinary cinemas if there was no I-Max in the area. Does anyone know of similar cases?
Marvel once released the first two episodes of their Inhumans TV series as a feature length movie exclusively via IMAX cinemas.
Due to a variety of internal political issues at Marvel the show was absolutely terrible, but regardless it’s a good case to demonstrate that there is precedent for these sorts of exclusive distribution deals.
“A theatrical deal for Gerwig’s Narnia doesn’t indicate a fundamental shift in Netflix’s strategy, but is another exception to its otherwise straight-to-streaming model, which it has occasionally veered from to satisfy filmmakers seeking to release their pictures in cinemas.”
The issue becomes how would Netflix enforces this. If Greta gets a theatrical release and I was another filmmaker, I would be pissed off if my film didn’t get the same treatment. I don’t want to be in the room when Rian Johnson finds this out.